


There's No Light Without Darkness

by KisekiMa



Series: Tohsaka Team [2]
Category: Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-26
Updated: 2017-04-26
Packaged: 2018-10-24 06:12:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 26,652
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10735788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KisekiMa/pseuds/KisekiMa
Summary: The Grail was destroyed, yet another supervisor is sent to Fuyuki by the Church. Bazett and Lancer return to Japan as well, to investigate the strange darkness in the city. And inhabitants of Tohsaka residence may soon be caught up in a completely new mess…Continuation of "The Only Thing You Can Change".





	1. Pray and Work

**Author's Note:**

> If you haven't read previous part, please check its summary below.
> 
> The Grail in Fuyuki was destroyed at the end of the Fifth Grail War. There was no winner, because remained Masters and Servants decided to work together to destroy the evil imprisoned within the Grail. Thanks to sisters Rin and Sakura, Archer was saved from Kotomine (who intended to make him a mix of Assassin and Avenger – and a twisted psycho by the way) and became a familiar; the Tohsaka trio lives normally, enjoying a happy family life. And Lancer made a new contract with Bazett - they work together, hunting magi and abominations for Mage's Association.
> 
> All characters and features belong to their rightful owners.

 

_"I have a feeling that something is breaking, again."_

* * *

The church surroundings were dark and inhospitable. Nobody cared for this place for a very long time.

A stone path, with lots of dried leaves on it. Flowers were also neglected and yellowed, the silver-haired girl thought that they desperately need watering.

She sighed heavily and came in. Door slammed behind her with an empty sound, like she just entered the tomb.

"What a mess…"

The air was heavy with dust and smell of burned candles. The girl looked around, no signs of disappointment or any other emotion on her face. Some benches were destroyed, others covered with a layer of unknown dirt.

"At least I will have some work here until pipe organs comes…"

She checked the whole building and chose a small, almost empty room for herself. There was only a simple bed inside and a box in the corner. She opened it carefully and found nothing but some clothes, which belonged to the former resident of this place.

"What's this? They told me that a priest lived here, but it looks like a girl's pendant…"

It was a beautiful, triangular, almost heart-shaped jewel with silver chain. Little symbol of cross was engraved at the pendant and the girl found it even more attractive because of that. She touched it gently and, after a moment of hesitation, hanged it around her neck.

She sighed for one last time. A lot of work awaited her, hard and lonely work. Cleaning and other priestess's duties during days and investigating at nights. But she will not complain. She never does.

" _Ora et labora_ ," she said, closing her eyes and cupped her hands in prayer. 'Pray and work'. It was her life, always like that. Another task had to be fulfilled, that's all. She will make it no matter what.

If god decides she needs help, he will send her some.

* * *

Archer was desperately trying to hide his displeasure, but it was painted on his face anyway. He was standing at the airport, with his arms crossed, waiting for Rin and Sakura to stop talking.

"You have your phone, yes?" He gave Rin the suitcase. Archer spent nearly two of his salaries to buy her this phone and it took almost a week to teach her how to use it. He gave up eventually and forced her to promise that she'll at least pick up the phone if he calls…

"Yes. And I will be in touch with you, don't worry."

"Hmmm." It was everything he had to say at this moment, trying to not complain openly.

"You know I can't take you with me to Clock Tower. You're illegal, they could even confiscate you and try some experiments on you."

He was watching her face without a word, trying to memorize every detail, just in case. She was a mature woman now, no more ponytails and ribbons in her hair. Her blue eyes were smiling when she said:

"It's ok, Sakura was learning hard, she's a good magus, and can handle you alone."

"I did not say anything."

She laughed.

"Don't panic, I'll be back." Tohsaka gently patted his face. "I was in London few times already and I always came back, so what's wrong with you?"

"You never left for so long before." Archer said reluctantly. "Two weeks were usually enough."

"You're hopeless…" Rin smiled, somehow happy because of his clear manifestation of longing and jealously. "I promise I'll go back as soon as we finish our research."

"You don't need to promise me anything, you're an adult, Rin."

"I love you too, Archer." She laughed loudly, went through the gate and waved to them from the other side, shouting the last 'Goodbye!' before check in.

* * *

Hunger was unbearable.

The creature was angry. After spending long years in peace, sleeping under the great energy generator, it was forced to search for nutrition. The creature again came to the surface and went into the night. Not completely awaken or materialized, it was spreading through the city like a shapeless shadow, like self conscious darkness.

There was a lot of food around, indeed. Plenty of warm creatures, their blood, their life energy, their emotions… Some people were even better, magical energy was flowing through their bodies, easy to digest. And yet there was something even more attractive, more appetizing and inviting than wraiths and ghosts – bodies made of pure magic. The think of devouring them made the creature excited.

And so the night hunt began.

* * *

"I have a feeling that something is breaking, again."

Sakura was caressing her familiar's hair. He was lying on the couch, reading a book, with head on her lap.

"What do you mean?"

"Rin is in London and may get into troubles. Mother is in her family town, where she deals with troubles of others. This house seems so empty without them."

"It's quiet, indeed." He said, closing the book. "At last we can get some rest."

"True, but… This feeling…"

"I know." He grabbed her hand. "Don't worry, Sakura. Nothing is breaking yet." He was silent for a moment, thinking, searching for the best words. "I may not have a power of Servant anymore, but it does not mean I will not protect you."

"I know." She smiled, stroking his white forelock. "And I'm not a defenseless girl anymore. Rin trained me with magic, you with bow. I can take care of myself, so you don't need to worry of me."

"You're the head of Tohsaka family now, of course you're powerful, Sakura."

"Flattery will get you nowhere." She chuckled. "By the way, you shouldn't be at the meeting with Miss Fujimura now?"

Archer's heavy sigh was a sign that the mood was ruined at this moment.

"No way I will be going out with her every Friday. She's a heavy drinker, too hard for me." True horror in his voice. "She was not like that when she was younger… Probably."

"But she's right that you should integrate more with teacher circle."

"Sakura…" He rolled his eyes and rose to sitting position. "I'm only the archery instructor, I work early in the morning and it's difficult to meet any other teacher at this hour..."

"And that's why you should integrate even more!"

She was teasing him, no doubt. It was frightening, how fast Tohsaka's genes activated within her.

"Fine, laugh how much you want, I won't go anyway." He stood up and stared at the window. "Cats are too loud tonight, don't you think?"

Sakura was listening for a while and shrugged.

"Maybe they're hungry?"

"No, I filled their bowls in the morning and you did it again when we came back from the airport. Just take a look."

She concentrated and looked using her familiar's eyes. Sisters tried to not do this often, to not violate the privacy of Archer's mind, but it was very useful anyway.

It was almost completely dark outside, but Sakura could see their cats clearly. Big ginger female was visibly nervous, to the point of waving her tail and making angry noises. Other two spotted kitties were screaming even louder, staring at something behind the fence.

Archer grabbed his bow, opened the window, prepared an arrow and shot. Painful scream of a cat was a proof that he did not miss the target.

"What was that? How could you?!" Sakura stood up, more than disturbed.

He did not answer, but just went down the stairs and out to the yard, to collect his prey. Sakura, disgusted and shocked, came after him.

"I hope you have a good explanation…" She stopped talking, when a terrible smell hit her nostrils. It looked like this cat was dead long before an arrow hit it, but its rotting corpse was still moving somehow.

"I knew it." Archer was visibly worried, but she could sense a little bit of fascination in his voice. "Undead familiar."

"What does it mean?" Sakura looked into the eyes of killed animal, they were empty and a red light was slowly vanishing inside them. She felt a sudden shiver and was not surprised by Archer's answer.

"Troubles."


	2. Friend's Duty

_"_ _I'm not a Servant. There's no Grail to summon Servants anymore."_

* * *

She was tired and evidently lost her enthusiasm. Another day of cleaning brought no visible effects, it was like moving dirt from one place to another. She had no strength to move furniture or take out the rubble.

"Maybe I just leave it like that?"

The thought was tempting, but she felt ashamed almost immediately. There was no time for weakness. She sat down on a heap of trash and took a deep breath.

 _I need more strength to fulfill my task, I will make it without fail._ She was holding the pendant in her hand and repeating these thoughts with her eyes closed, almost like a prayer. _All I need is more strength…_

She felt a sudden movement of the air behind her back. It was a cold, strong wind, like after hastily opened door. She turned around and froze.

Strange, humanoid figure appeared there, kneeling down on one knee on the wooden floor. It was a man, his face hidden behind a shawl, his head lowered. Unusual man, in unusual black clothes, with a smell of powerful magic around him.

"Servant…?"

No, something was wrong. His evil aura, that made her body react with pain, like in the presence of a demon… These strange black stains which appeared on her skin. He was possessed or…?

"I'm not a Servant. There's no Grail to summon Servants anymore."

"So what are you?"

The man stood up, still a little dizzy and visibly unhappy. He stared at the priestess with his piercing red eyes and she was sure that he was smiling viciously behind the shawl.

* * *

"Surprise!"

A man in casual clothes, with long blue hair and red eyes, was waiting outside the door, smiling widely. Woman in suit, with characteristic magenta hair, was standing just behind him. "Hey, you don't look surprised at all! You were expecting us or something?"

"Kinda." Archer, who went down to welcome the guests, gave them malicious grin. "It's a friend's duty to get into troubles together, after all."

Bazett only smiled, welcomed Archer with a hug and proceed to the mansion. Cú Chulainn glanced at him suspiciously and visibly hesitated to enter.

"What?" Archer chuckled. "You've gotten rusty or something? It's so easy to scare you now?"

"I can kick your ass anytime, jerk, if you want to check it."

"You may try after dinner."

"What, you're afraid I'll beat you so badly that you won't be able to cook?" Lancer came in at last and Archer closed the door, laughing.

"It's not that I missed you, but it's really hard to find another idiot like you," he admitted honestly.

Cú Chulainn nonchalantly put his hands in his pockets.

"Just wait till dinner, I'll finish you quickly."

"So, Sakura…" - it was Bazett's voice from upstairs - "you're telling me that Rin has not been here for a day and you're already sitting with a dead cat in the living room?"

Lancer glanced at Archer over his shoulder. His expression was priceless.

"What can I say?" Bowman shrugged. "Yes, we are truly glad that you came."

* * *

_This place, again. Always. In every possible timeline._

Something inside him wanted to yell on this hated view. How many times will he end here, drawn into another reality by this damned pendant? How many times this story needs to repeat itself to reach conclusion?

He stood up reluctantly and raised his head to meet the gaze of his 'Master'.

_Huh? So… something is different this time._

It was not a priest who held this cursed jewel now, but a girl. A fine girl, he had to admit. But something was wrong with her anyway. He detected quickly that she had the same smell as the priest… and it was more than enough to loathe her.

 _Why am I here, again? To destroy_. Not even a second of hesitation. _The only question is what or who should I destroy. And it seems that this girl will be the one to decide_ _._

She was sitting there, motionless, on the rubble, her golden eyes wide open. He could not resist and smiled widely.

_The Queen of Rubble and the King of Mud… Well-matched couple, indeed._

And this time he got a 'Master', who reacted with pain on his presence… Could anyone be better for the guy who enjoys pain in every way?

* * *

"We have a Necromancer or a vampire here. Maybe both."

Lancer and Bazett nodded, looking at the dead familiar. Cú Chulainn was trying to sense traces of magical energy, but emanations were too weak for him to find any details. Whoever sent this cat, was smart enough to use not enough essence to be easily traced by Servant or another ghost-like being.

"Why both?" – Sakura asked.

"There's almost always someone fixated on the idea of immortality, who follows a vampire. Necromancer, Alchemist, choose freely." Bazett wanted to take a biscuit, but she lost appetite after one glance at decaying cat.

"Can you magically track down the magus, Sakura?" – Lancer asked.

"No, I can't. Maybe Rin could do it, but not me…"

"So we know nothing." Archer was standing near the window, as usual, with his arms crossed. "Or maybe you have more details? That's why you're here, in Fuyuki?"

"Actually no…" Bazett gave him a thin grin. "Mage's Association sent us here to investigate the darkness… This undead is a bonus, I suppose."

"Darkness?"

"A shadow, draining energy and causing madness…"

Sakura and Archer swallowed, visibly tensed. It sounded awfully familiar.

"Is there a possibility that these two matters are somehow related?"

"It could be, but we must collect some evidence first." Bazett looked a little pale when she pointed the corpse. "Could you… take it out already. I'm hungry, you know?"

* * *

_Why are you doing this, Shirou?_

Lancer did as he promised and Archer's ass was in serious troubles now. They both were using wooden, training weapons, yet still it was only because of Cú Chulainn's courtesy that no bones of his opponent were broken. The gap in strength between Servant and familiar was just this big.

 _To know my place in line_ , Archer replied, parrying another blow. His thoughts had to be much faster than movements to resist - at least - some of Lancer's attacks. _I must know my abilities, I had no opportunity to check this body in a duel till now._

It was not that he forgot, how to fight. Years of experience on battlefields were not wasted, he had a good technique and still was able to predict opponent's movements. But, without speed, strength and endurance of a Servant, he could only dream about some tricks to catch Lancer off guard. There's no way he could defeat or even wound him while fighting fairly.

Not many creatures could do this, to be honest. And Archer thought that he still had a chance against Bazett, maybe…

_I don't remember the moment when Rin or I gave you permission to fight. You have other duties now._

_I will fight, if you're in danger._ He endured a kick to the stomach. _Sakura, get out of my mind, please, pain may reach you._

_Oh, so you think of it now? This is exactly what I mean by 'no fighting', you know? If you don't listen, I'll just use mind control on you._

She was serious and almost frightening. He frowned, truly amazed by this sudden declaration.

_Sakura, this is cruel..._

_Well, only when necessary, so better be obedient._ She smiled to him mentally. _But seriously, don't you think that you have exhausted the limit of miracles for this family?_

 _True_. Another kick threw him in the air; he stopped on the fence and slipped down to the grass, breathing heavily. Still no broken bones, but bruises were a completely different matter.

"Enough already?" - Lancer asked. He knew what Archer had in mind and decided that they already reached satisfactory conclusion.

"Yes. Thank you."

Cú Chulainn helped him get up.

"This is the first time when someone thanks me for beating the crap out of him."

They all laughed, although it was not as funny, as it seems. Archer knew, that he would be no match for any creature on the level of mature vampire and above. What he could do to protect his family in the face of such enemy, was to slow it down and probably die in the process.

He smiled. When the time comes, he would know what to do.


	3. Abyssus abyssum invocat

_"_ _These are restrictions, four sigils to control you. From now on I will be the one to decide how much power you can use."  
_

* * *

Pale, red-haired woman in leather jacket rubbed the silver choker around her neck and looked up to the night sky. No full moon yet, but it was coming, and an inevitable fate with it.

_I refuse to give up._

She was walking through the graveyard, tracing ley lines, until she found a perfect place to recharge. Her circuits were affected by the black blood, yet still she had a control over her magic and was determined to make it remain this way. However, she needed energy. Restricting spells in her chocker required fuel to keep her brain uninfected.

The woman sat down under the big tree, where magic of the earth were flowing slowly but constantly, mixed with the essence of ghosts and emanations from the graves. An ideal place for her specialization. She was not afraid of the dead, she knew exactly how to deal with them. Living creatures were irritating, though. But it was easy to make them dead and obedient, just by a single shot in the head.

_Just like these annoying Tohsakas. The hell they deserved it! Do they even understand what they did?_

She was not the only one using this enormous magical reactor hidden within the mountain. Shadows also came from beneath it, and were now chasing her, recognizing as a rival in feeding. Well, partially they were right.

Woman tensed and prepared her gun instinctively, hearing a strange voice. It was an owl's hooting, she overreacted, again.

_Owls are useless. I need familiars with fangs… Curse this bowman!_

She smiled to herself, thinking about Tohsaka's familiar. He had an aura of spiritual being, and that was making him easy to control for Necromancer as skilled as she was. His body, made of pure magical energy, could be used like a battery. Forcing him to devour some souls from time to time should be enough to keep them both in good condition. Not to say, that he could function like a normal human being, not decaying, not weakened in the sunlight, not giving the smell of rotten flesh. Her life would be much easier with such creature at her service.

 _Tempting._ She closed her eyes, the gun still in her hand, just in case. _But impossible for now. I'm not strong enough to defeat both sisters. But I will keep an eye on them._

Woman sighed heavily, slowly loosing focus, and decided to take a short nap.

_Let's concentrate on surviving first._

She hoped that Darkness won't find her till dawn, because she was already too exhausted to rise a protecting barrier.

* * *

"Miss Tohsaka, are you sure you want to leave our department?"

Rin was sitting face to face with her former Instructor, feeling uneasy, like under some creepy investigation.

"Yes," she said, trying to sound as kind, as she could, and she was doing it well. "These are my limits in Mineralogy, there's no reason in continuing after reaching my goal."

A lingering stare from behind the glasses made her feel ever more uncomfortable than before. She smiled widely, trying to hide embarrassment.

"But why Modern Magecraft Theories? Miss Tohsaka, I really don't understand. We could propose you position of Instructor already. It's a career some magi, especially from East, could only dream of…"

"I have my reasons. Important reasons."

She withstood another powerful gaze with dignity.

"I insist that you reconsider this, Miss Tohsaka."

Instructor closed the folder and intended to give it back to Tohsaka, absolutely not convinced by her argumentation.

"I will." Although she already made her decision. Rin stood up and shook magus's hand. "But please keep these papers anyway."

Outside the door she took a long, deep breath. What a difficult situation it was, to make her feel like a high school student again!

"Well, it's done, at last."

Something was vibrating in her pocket. She was surprised that she did not forget to take the phone with her this time… There was only one person who knew her phone number. Yet she was staring at the display, hesitant. After a short while, she put the gadget back to pocket.

Rin walked down the hallway, irritated. How could she know that this damned Lord El-Melloi II would recognize her Archer after all these years? One photo, one damned photo, and she got into serious trouble. Having human as familiar was a monstrous act to most of magi, not to mention the forbidden magic they used with Sakura to achieve it… Investigation and confiscate were the lightest consequences she could expected.

Her secret was safe, but in exchange she was now Lord's El-Melloi II assistant in his experiments. Rin clenched her fists in silent anger, hoping that Lord would not feel a sudden need to investigate Archer personally. For now she owed him, but if he reaches for more, it will be a declaration of war.

* * *

"So, Hell called Hell in our case. You're not so holy after all. I can smell it."

Caren gave him a unfavourable gaze. She was facing him proudly, without fear, enduring pain which his presence caused her.

"I asked what are you and how did you get here."

"The World sent me, I suppose. You heard about Counter Force and its beasts, its hunting dogs? Their job is to clean up messes caused by humans."

"And you are one of them?"

"Not really…" Unexpected bitterness in his voice. "I'm not even a proper Counter Guardian… a substitute rather. I'm involved only when complete destruction is needed."

Nothing in his current state was proper, to be honest. His wish was dumb, his existence was a gloomy joke. Yet still the World found him useful enough to accept a wish of corrupted Servant-like thing. And from that day he witnessed only ends of the worlds, of timelines beyond hope, like himself.

"You see… I can only destroy." His red eyes pierced the girl but she did not react in any way.

_Well, at least someone do not fear me here…_

"What do you mean? What are your abilities then?"

"Causing pain. Destroying people, both bodies and minds. Spreading the disease, the blackening, the sickness of mind. Making my imaginary world reality."

"I see…"

Caren was thinking hard. This had no sense for her. What was the reason of him appearing here?

"So what do you want from me?"

The man burst out laughing.

"Me? What a joke…" He was almost crying with laughter, making the priestess tremble with pain. "The World sent me to obey you, this is certain. But I have no idea, for what reason. I have no orders, no targets, no free will here. It may be a mistake, a system error, caused by this cursed pendant. Or just a coincidence. But, as one from the Church, do you believe in coincidences?"

Caren frowned. She had no intention of letting him provoke her, but she almost reached her limit already. She had no use for troublemaker like him… Or maybe he could help her with investigating?

Well, maybe. But there was no way she could let such demonic creature run freely, destroying things for fun.

"Give me your hands," she ordered coldly, catching him off guard.

"What for?"

"No talking. Give me your hands or I'll force you."

He narrowed his eyes in anger and Caren reacted with a shiver. More black stains appeared on her hands.

"Stop it." An echo of pain in her voice, but it was also cold and determined. "Your hands. Now."

He gave up eventually, even teasing her had some limits. Not to mention the pressure he felt just by ignoring her orders. She tied his arms with the red holy shroud; one, two… four full circles. And it was painfully tight.

"What are you doing?" - he asked, a little nervous.

"Quiet."

Caren was speaking in Latin, some kind of strange spell or prayer, and with every word the shroud was burning his arms harder. When she finished and untied him, four red lines remained on his skin, like strange magical tattoos.

"These are restrictions, four sigils to control you. From now on I will be the one to decide how much power you can use."

"Oh? And what if someone attacks me?"

"They let you use your full potential." She shrugged. "But only in defense. They will not help you if you start a fight or even provoke it without my permission."

He snorted and gave her a gaze full of hatred. In response for pain he caused her, Caren restricted his powers to the lowest level with one word.

"Fourth. It will be like this until you show some respect."

All he could do now was watching her back, as she left to her room. Just to find out, what exactly happened, he tried to project his daggers. The only effect was all four lines shining for a moment, not letting his mana flow properly to cast a spell.

He shook his head, not yet willing to admit that he lost this round.

"Short leash for nasty dog?" He laughed, and it was a completely insane, awful laugh, which echoed dreadfully within the chapel.


	4. Quiet the Mind and the Soul Will Speak

_The truth was, that, for the first time in his long existence, he was afraid of losing something precious. It was so strong, depressing like never before. And he had absolutely no idea how to deal with this kind of feeling._

* * *

Bazett was looking carefully at compass-like magic detector she borrowed from Tohsakas. She could not find any traces of magic, blood or anything... They inspected with Lancer two houses already, full of dead bodies, and proceeded up the street. It looked like this entire residential area was invaded last night and there was not a slightest chance of finding survivors.

"You found something?"

"Noooooo. Just more drained people, but still no signs of troublemaker." Cú Chulainn shrugged, coming out from the building. "It looks like it's really Darkness. Or shadow. Something shapeless anyway."

Bazett nodded, she came to the same conclusion. Something came, drained every bit of energy from its victims, and left only empty shells behind. They probably did not even notice any danger. Like it was not real.

"A vampire's doing should left them drained only of blood, probably. But they are... empty, literally. I looks rather that everything were taken from them by something like…"

She hesitated, thinking.

"Like Servant? Eating souls?" Lancer stroked his chin. "Well, maybe. And it reminds me of some particular Servant from the last War, if you know what I mean, Master."

"It... looks similar, you're right. But is it even possible?"

"Who knows…" A heavy sigh. "This one or another, actual creature may be hiding somewhere, sending only these shapeless familiars to feed. The easiest way will be to find the lair."

That was true, but they still had not enough clues. Bazett clenched her fists, determined to end it as soon as possible. She would not allow anyone walking around and killing people, no matter what kind of creature it was.

* * *

Swoosh. Swoosh. Swoosh. Then monotonous sound of an arrow hitting arrow, splitting it in two.

Nobody should be at this ungodly hour in the archery dojo in Homurahara Academy. Only Archer was standing there, on freshly polished floor, firing constantly, without thinking or even concentrating on this action. He was shooting one arrow after another, hitting always the same point. There was already a pile of splinters on the ground under the target.

He was so lost in his thoughts, he barely noticed that Sakura came. She stood next to him, in her training clothes, and shot. She hit the center with ease.

"Good shot," he said, finally back to the reality.

"I had the best teacher." She winked. "What are you doing here on your day off?"

"Oh, this… I came to do a little cleaning and ended up…"

"…destroying arrows."

She smiled and it was a familiar, warm, encouraging smile. A very special one. Sakura's smile only for him.

Archer felt ashamed for troubling her with his bad mood. She must have felt his anxiety through their bond, even stronger than before, because of Rin's absence. He had to keep his composure just for her sake.

"Anyway" – Sakura continued, acting like she didn't notice anything - "I came to try something out, with your help. I've just consulted it with Rin and she explained me the way to use the spell correctly, so it may be worth trying."

His eyes narrowed at the sound of Rin's name, although he tried to hide it.

"You've spoken to Rin?"

"Yeah, no later than two hours ago."

"Good." A shadow of disappointment crawled across his face, and something in his eyes changed. It was like clouds suddenly covered the sun and left his eyes empty, without single ray of light. He prepared another arrow and shot, trying clear his mind from unnecessary thoughts.

 _Two weeks, one day and five hours_. _Rin did not pick up the phone from me. Not even once._

Archer knew that he was useless now, comparing himself to Servant like Lancer, and would not blame anyone for abandoning him, but still could not handle his emotions. He missed Rin. They were always together for about fourteen years. It felt now like a part of his own shattered soul was missing.

The truth was, that, for the first time in his long existence, he was afraid of losing something precious. It was so strong, depressing like never before. And he had absolutely no idea how to deal with this kind of feeling.

"So, would you like to try this magic with me?" Sakura was patient and full of understanding, like always. Archer felt bad, again, for hurting her with an echo of his inner fears.

"Sure. What should I do?"

"Just prepare your bow, relax and open to me."

"Open to what…? O-oh…"

He felt Sakura's magic already, filling his body with energy, creating circuits… No, it was not like that. What he could feel now was an access to Sakura's circuits. And Archer was somehow sure, that his strength and abilities were now available for the girl.

 _Familiars are magical beasts, after all_ , she explained mentally and sent him an image of purple energetic arrow. _Let's try this, shall we?_

A thin smile appeared on his face when he drew back the bowstring.

 _Not this much, we don't want to destroy the target!_ Sakura chuckled. _Ready?_

They were as one now. Two bows, two arrows, two beams of energy hit their targets, perfectly matched. Magic dispelled quickly, doing no harm, it was only a training after all.

"So it worked." Sakura smiled again, retreating and cutting their connection. "Now we could support Bazett and Lancer in their fights."

"Yes." Something has changed, really. Little bit of self-confidence returned along with her magic flowing through their bond. "It's always better to have some support from distance."

"I'm glad it's better now." Sakura's deep sigh of relief made him feel guilty again. "So, please, never call yourself useless again, even inside your mind. You can do it for me?"

Archer embraced the girl, hiding his face in her hair, absorbing all of kindness and warmness she had for him. He knew he was lucky beyond imagination, to be able to live here with such a great person, to be a part of the family. But still…

Something was missing. One half of him.

"I'll try, I promise."

* * *

"I can help you with that, you know?"

He was laying at one of the benches, with his arm crossed behind his head and one red eye open. It looked like he was enjoying a free time between naps.

Caren was trying to move some parts of the furniture. They were too heavy for small girl and she just fell after a short fight with the load. With tears in her eyes, she clenched her teeth and tried again.

This time he grabbed the bench from the other side.

"You're the stubborn one, don't you?"

Their hands touched for a second, and she retreated, expecting a painful sensation. But there was nothing this time. He had to be in a very good mood or something, not to mention that sigils were effective. She felt just a warm, dry skin, nothing more.

"So, what's next?" He looked around, searching for another job.

"You will not please me by just helping," she said coldly.

"It was not my intent." A vicious light in his eyes. "Watching you suffer was amusing, but I just get bored already."

She turned around, pissed off.

"This is your fault for sitting here, doing nothing. You should be patrolling town at night, at least…"

"I'll go if you give me back my shadows."

"I won't."

"Then I won't take a single step out."

Caren sighed. This is how it looked like for almost two weeks. They're both were already frustrated, but also stubborn enough to give each other a silent treatment. There was no possible way to get out from this impasse, but at least she got used to his presence and was able to ignore the pain.

"By the way, what's your name?"

He hesitated for a moment, with one eyebrow raised, then shrugged.

"I don't have a name, you may call me as you like."

"Hmm…" No real emotions in her voice, she was only mean. "I would like to call you a 'dog', but I don't know if you deserve it. Dogs are loyal and obedient, after all."

"Even the best fighting dog is useless in a cage." He smiled under his shawl, she was sure, recognizing amusement in his voice. "Besides, if you want to break me, you should try harder."

 _What?_ She turned around, totally surprised. _Do I act like trying to 'break him'? What was that? Why should I 'break him' in the first place? What for?_

"Why do you think I want to break you?" – she asked, and truly wanted to know the answer.

"It's always some fun for the ones like you, right?" - he said, just like that.

 _Like the most obvious thing in the world_ , Caren thought. _Like it's nothing. He just said that 'breaking' people is fun… What's in this guy's head? Something is wrong with him or he just tries to piss me off?_

She frowned, just a little.

"You will not provoke me, forget about it."

His smile widened, for sure.

"I don't need to. I just want you to finish this stupid work and use these new organs at last." He glanced at the instrument. "Or this is just a decoration and you can't play it, huh?"

Now she was visibly mad, a distant resemblance to Kirei painted on her face and the same cruelty in her golden eyes.

"I will shut these mouth of yours!"

She rolled up her sleeves, preparing to play.

"That's what I'm waiting for." He chuckled and leaned against the wall, with his arms crossed. "Can I get some Bach?"

"It's not a wish list, you…"

He chuckled but, when she started to play, stopped immediately and closed his eyes.

Minutes were passing and Caren was playing passionately. Pure sounds resounded in the church, filling the place with a strange atmosphere. Majesty? Splendor? Not exactly. It was like forcing listener to look deep into his own soul, to the places within, of which existence one has not a slightest idea.

But they were there, hidden, away from the light. Like a chamber full of secrets. And these sounds were not even encouraging to open it. They broke in without asking for permission.

The last chord was vibrating under the ceiling for a while after she finished, causing a sudden shiver down his spine. Silence awoke him, it was louder than music itself, leaving a strange feeling of emptiness and despair.

Caren was sitting motionless, almost holding her breath. She was waiting for his reaction, even if she wanted to deny it.

"Well…" After a long moment of silence, he moved slowly. "Let's say it was good enough to make me clean the courtyard for you."

He went outside, leaving the priestess a little embarrassed. It was a strange and new feeling for Caren, but she couldn't stop smiling.


	5. Shadows Hidden, Shadows Revealed

_The girl tensed for a second, as expecting something. And then she fell down, with a bullet in her chest, so suddenly that her companion did not even manage to catch her before she hit the ground._

* * *

_Well, owls are not as useless as I thought._

She was lying on the roof, in sniper position, ready to shoot. Her hideout was perfect, she had a clear view at the street below. At the same time trees gave her shelter and shadow, covering her sensitive skin from sunlight. The stage was set, and she was waiting patiently for her target to come.

Undead owl was observing this mansion for almost two weeks and it was enough time to prepare. First, there was only one sister now in the place. Second, there was a magus with a Servant, probably friends of Tohsakas, but they were rarely at home, especially at nights. And third – daily routine of inhabitants was so predictable… It was like an invitation for assault.

Purple-haired girl appeared on the street exactly in time, in the company of her familiar, who was carrying the shopping bags.

_This is just too easy…_

The girl tensed for a second, as expecting something. And then she fell down, with a bullet in her chest, so suddenly that her companion did not even manage to catch her before she hit the ground.

The shooter retreated carefully, switching to the owl's vision again. As suspected, Tohsaka's familiar did not follow her. He was trying to rescue the girl, of course, putting her in reclined position and trying to secure her chest with some foil.

 _Oh, so I hit her lungs? Good._ The woman smiled, satisfied. She was watching the white-haired guy calling an ambulance and then performing resuscitation in panic.

One of these damned Tohsakas was now out of the game. Even if she survives, she will not be able to cast any spell for a long time. Probably she's already cut this familiar off mana.

 _Perfect._ He'll come to her soon, two-thirds of the revenge plan will be executed. And then killing second sister will be just a formality.

* * *

"I told you, Master, that I can smell a shadow from this place. And here it is."

Bazett and Lancer entered the church, disturbing usual little concert of Caren. Priestess stared at them, utterly surprised.

"That was rude." The man with face hidden under the shawl stood up slowly from the bench. "I was listening, you know? And it was damn good."

Caren noticed that her dark 'dog' moved forward just enough to shield her from possible attack and she was a little surprised.

"How can I help you?' – she asked politely, standing up.

"By getting rid of this abnormality you have here." Lancer gave her his usual, predatory grin. "Or at least stopping him from eating people and stuff."

"But he's not…"

Cú Chulainn sighed.

"Yeah, right. The innocence incarnated, I get it." He was very fast with assumptions in this case. Or he just wanted to provoke a fight.

"Permission to kick them out of here, Master?" - Masked 'Servant' asked, visibly amused and ready for challenge.

"Zero." When Caren said it, all restrictions vanished. Pain invaded her body, much stronger than ever before, and she could tell with ease, that her pet was now much more powerful than both of his opponents. Being fueled by energy from the World had to be nice from time to time. "But please go outside and don't ruin my church."

"You've heard the lady's request?" He chuckled. "Shall we?"

Bazett nodded and they all left the church, leaving only Caren inside. Fraga could sense the power of this abnormal and knew well that it was completely different than before, when he was summoned in Assassin class.

 _Be careful, Lancer._ Her lips tightened and thoughts were serious. _I can't support you with Fragarach unless he'll use his most powerful attack…_

 _Easy, Master, I know._ Cú Chulainn was focused, but also somehow excited. _Let me play with him, I deserve some fun as well._

Masked 'Servant' stopped at a distance of about five meters from his enemies. Two darkened Black Keys appeared in his hands. After a short spell, knives changed his shape and size, enlarged and strengthened to the proper swords.

Not wasting more time for talking, they clashed, faster than the eye. Cú Chulainn recognized his opponent's pattern of movements and style with ease. These were the same tactics as ones used by the jerk, but somehow different. His blows were more violent and powerful, his movements faster and wilder. It was like the analytical composure of Archer was replaced by the cruelty and intention to hurt, without any restrains. Lancer did not mind it at all, he found a perfect opponent at last.

"So long since I had a decent fight!" – 'Servant' said, blocking a powerful thrust of spear and jumping to the air, to answer with a kick.

Lancer could see amusement in these red eyes and he smiled cruelly, while dodging. They both enjoyed this duel, maybe even too much.

But Cú Chulainn noticed quickly, that his opponent was in control of the fight, almost totally. This shadow-guy was adjusting immediately, both power of his blows and speed, and was reacting only with the least power necessary to keep Lancer at bay. It was irritating. There was no way to break through his defense, so he jumped back.

"What's the matter?" Shadows were dancing on the skin of the "Servant', revealing his excitement. "Don't tell me you're bored already?"

"Not at all. But I must ask you something before I'll pierce your heart."

"I will not stop you." He chuckled. "From both."

"Why are you sending these shadows to kill people? Don't you have enough mana already?"

"I'm not sending any shadows." His answer was disturbingly quick and simple. "I'm just sitting here, enjoying music, watering flowers and stuff. But you will not believe it, correct?"

"Correct." Blue warrior changed his position, one hand on the ground, legs ready to jump. Already in the air, he prepared his Noble Phantasm.

No fear in these insane red eyes, like he was making fun of Cú Chulainn all the time.

"Gáe Bolg!"

A flower-shaped shield appeared in the air before 'Servant', coming straight from his hand.

 _It's the magical shield that the jerk once used against Saber_ , Lancer remembered. Yet it was different. Corrupted. Every layer had a shadow on the surface, but this did not mean that shield was less effective. Actually, the final outcome was just the opposite.

Red spear returned to the hand of its owner, who narrowed his eyes, surprised.

"So, you want to retreat? I will not pursue you."

Shadow 'Servant' was still standing there, unscratched, not even visibly tired or disturbed. He lowered the shawl a little and licked one of his daggers, pure enjoyment on his face. It made Lancer ever more angry, to the extent of wishing to crush the guy and wipe this ugly, irritating smile from his face.

"Enough, Lancer. We'll go for now."

Bazett was calm, no emotions in her voice. She has seen enough and was already thinking about future tactics to deal with this unexpected obstacle.

Enduring the humiliation after losing, Lancer turned around and followed his Master with dignity.

* * *

They took him to the police station for interrogation. They were asking of every detail, like if he was a culprit, not witness. He did not blame them, though. That's their job, after all…

After putting on a coat, to hide the blood stains on his clothes, he came back to the hospital. They threw him out from there after few hours, saying that Sakura lives, although barely, and that time to visit is over. So he came back to the empty mansion, worrying much more than he should, and thinking of what to do next.

First he needed to change clothes. Smell of Sakura blood was making him extremely nervous. Yet he was just sitting on the bed, in a dark room, clenching his fists in frustration.

Someone nearly killed Sakura, in front of her own house, in the middle of the day. And Archer was just standing there and could do absolutely nothing.

No changes with the last part, to be honest. He still could do nothing, just waiting and trying not to vanish. It was not something he was accustomed to.

_What should I do now? Right, call Miss Aoi._

He tried, but no one answered. It was not strange, considering how late it was already, so he decided to try again tomorrow. After a while of hesitation, he dialed Rin. No one was picking up the phone either, so he tried the second time, third and more…

"Hello?"

An answer, at last. But it was definitely not Tohsaka. A man. Archer tensed, unexpectedly irritated.

"Can I speak with Rin?" His voice was calm and polite as always, but man on the other side seemed somehow confused just by hearing it.

_And who, the hell, are you?_

"She's not here."

"Here means where exactly?" Archer sighed mentally. It was one of the strangest conversations he had since a very long time and it led most likely to nothing.

"In this room. In her apartment, of course. I suspect she's taking a shower just now." Voice was echoing a little, like the man on the other side was looking around. "Yes, exactly. Should I tell her something?"

Archer hesitated for a while. Don't knowing who it was, he cannot risk telling him too much.

"Yes, please tell her th…"

"Oh, wait, she's here."

Yes, it was definitely Rin's voice in the background, mumbling 'why this damn phone' or something like that.

"Hello?"

Hearing her after so much time of silence was almost painful.

"Rin, Sakura has been shot. She's in the hospital."

Telling this was easier than he thought. Even if she was trying to avoid him, she had to listen to these terrifying news.

"What's happened?" - Tohsaka asked after a moment of silent bewilderment, almost perfectly composed, as expected. Archer supposed it's because of the strange man who most probably was watching her right now.

He summarized everything, even Bazett's investigation, in few short sentences. He could hear that Rin was holding her breath for a while, wondering and hesitating.

"I see. Thank you for calling and be careful."

And she hung up before he could response.

Archer sighed. He was already exhausted and needed some sleep. Actually, sleeping and eating will have to be enough to keep him in this world. He decided to do his best – after all, he had to find someone and pay him back for hurting Sakura.

* * *

She could feel it in his voice. Although he seemed to talk with his usual, neutral and almost carefree tone, she just felt it. Some kind of inner disturbance.

_You won't trick me, Archer. I know you just too well._

If he was disturbed like that, the problem was more than serious. And there had to be something more than Sakura's life in danger.

She took a deep breath, thinking, and after a short while, started to pack her suitcase.

"What are you doing, Rin? We haven't finished our job yet."

A man with long, black hair was watching her, standing at the door with a glass in his hand. His eyes were shining with cleverness and self-confidence, also there was some kind of nobleness in his posture. Not to mention his fine clothes, elegant style similar to Tohsaka's, mixture of red and black.

"I'm going back. It is an emergency."

He gave her a gaze full of disappointment.

"Miss Tohsaka, I told you already how important is…"

Rin tried hard to not explode with anger in front of her superior but she just couldn't take it any longer. This guy had an incredible talent of pissing her off.

"No, YOU will hear me know!" She pointed a finger right into his face. "My sister is in hospital, my best friend may vanish at any moment and something definitely magical is literally eating people from town under my protection. If you truly think that your experiment is so important that you cannot just postpone it, you will have to pack your ass and fly with me to Fuyuki!"

Tohsaka left her Instructor frozen, not even waiting for his answer, and slammed the door in his face.


	6. Forced Bonds

_"_ _Bond built upon hatred is still a bond." He laughed and added bitterly: "And may be even stronger than normal one."_

* * *

Caren opened her eyes, slowly, because it was not an easy task. Her eyelids were heavy and she had an awful headache. Surprised, she found out that she was in her bed, lying comfortably, with some water and snacks at hand.

_I must have fainted when they started to fight… But how did I end up in bed?_

The 'answer' was standing nearby, observing the night sky through the small window, with his arms crossed. It looked like he was guarding her while she was unconscious.

"What are you doing here?"

"Is it so strange to bring my collapsed Master some water?" He glanced at her, one red eye was burning with a strange emotion. Disappointment, maybe? And then he just turned around and moved to the door, intending to leave.

"Where are you going?"

"Away from you, of course. Or you'll collapse again."

"No. Stay." It sounded like a request, not order. "I learned already, that it's all right when I restrain you a little. If you're not on your full power, I can barely feel anything."

"Why?" He stopped and listened, but was not looking at her at all, finding simple wooden floor more interesting. "You feel a sudden need of idle chit-chat or something?"

Caren blushed with anger and scolded herself mentally for being so easily provoked. This guy was extremely annoying, there's no wonder everyone attacks him on sight.

"Why were you trying to protect me?" – she asked hesitantly.

"What? Stupid question." He closed his eyes and answered in a strange manner, like superior, condescendingly enlightening his subordinate. "You're my connection to this reality. Of course I don't want you to die, it would mean my return to my plains covered in darkness. And believe me, you would die from boredom there."

She changed her position and reached for a glass.

"How did you become this Counter Guardian-like… thing?"

Caren did not really expect to hear an answer, but it was still worth trying.

"I sold myself. To the World," he replied simply, shrugging.

"Why? For a wish or something?"

"It was a very stupid reason, indeed." Unexpected sadness in his voice, like he was pitying himself. "I just wanted to be free from my Master."

She did not dare to interrupt, when he was so talkative. Curious, she waited patiently for him to finish. And he indeed spoke again after a short moment, looking through the window.

"Ironically, I was summoned again by this man. And again. And again. In every timeline, where it was possible... I should have wished to never seen him again, I suppose." Another short moment of silence. "Clouds are gone, we have some moonlight at last."

He was watching the moon with a strange, longing expression. Did he find it beautiful? Anything could be beautiful for such creature, except pain itself?

"You could not just disobey this man or something?" Caren was really curious, not knowing much about all these Servant-Master things.

He sighed.

"He knew too much about me. Every time."

"How was it possible?"

"Bond built upon hatred is still a bond." He laughed and added bitterly: "And may be even stronger than normal one."

Caren did not know, what to say. Now his obvious dissatisfaction, when he came the first day, had some sense, at last. His stubbornness and disobedience might be justified as well, yet she did not mean to tolerate them…

"I'll go patrolling at last." He took advantage of this moment of confusion and left, covering himself with shadows on the way. "And yes, I remember to not kill any bystanders."

* * *

"Archer!" Aoi found bowman waiting on the corridor and hugged him like a son. "Everything's alright?"

"Miss Aoi, have you not spoken with the doctor yet?"

"I'm not asking about Sakura, my dear." She gently stroked Archer's cheek, ignoring confusion painted on his face. "The doctors said she would not survive if you weren't there. I can imagine how horrible you must have felt…"

He swallowed, embarrassed, and lower his head.

"No, it's nothing, really… But how is she now?"

"Still unconscious but stable. We'll be transporting her today to my hometown, she'll get magical healing." She winked, seeing astonishment on his face. "What? I have some friends too, Archer. Both from magi families and the Church."

He breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm glad to hear that she'll be well cared for."

Aoi smiled, but there was also a sign of worry on her face.

"And what about you? You'll come with us?"

"No need to worry about me if Sakura will be fine," Archer said, looking her straight in the eyes, with complete confidence. Yet still she did not believe him completely. It was a motherly intuition? "And I have something to do in town. I can join you when I'm finished with it."

Years of being a mother of bothersome Tohsakas made her exceptionally sensitive to troubles, so she sounded decisively and seriously as she spoke.

"Don't do anything stupid. And it's not a kind request."

She stroked his hair, winked again and returned to the room to watch over Sakura.

* * *

Red-haired woman was sitting on the bench in the park, using senses of one of her undead animal scouts. It was a dog, big enough to feed her well, and easy to control. She resisted the temptation to close her eyes and it was a very good choice.

Something was coming, a barely noticeable movement on the night sky, a distant spark of light. She jumped right before an arrow hit the bench and exploded.

She smiled, looking for the hidden bowman, but she could see only another missile coming.

Next explosion. And one more. Faster, more powerful. She saw pieces of shattered jewels in the air and chuckled.

_Tohsaka's jewel magic? You've borrowed some from your Mistress and attached them to your arrows? Smart of you._

She had to loosen her choker and release some of her powers to be fast enough to avoid the missiles, yet still two or three reached her. Technically, it was not that Archer missed the target, not even once. She was just using abilities of her body, partially changed by the black blood, to messing with the flow of time in the last second before death. And he still managed to cause her some problems and wound her.

_He has advantage at long range… But I will not go for him, as he expects. I will make him come to my ground, when and where I'm prepared._

She smiled. She loved challenges and this undead was the one, indeed. Not as much as a vampire, but still she had lot of fun.

* * *

He followed her on the ground, like she expected, and attacked with two strange swords, covered with layer of shadows. She responded with gunfire and white-haired familiar was not fast enough to dodge all the bullets.

 _I've got his arm, for sure. But he's still attacking, a tough guy._ After a few seconds the woman gave her opponent a vicious smile. _Three, two, one. Now!_

His eyes widened, when he felt the spell within the bullet starting to affect his body. Red-haired decided to explain him the mechanism. Nothing was more enjoyable than observing how thinking prey realizes that there's no escape anymore.

"This is how magus creates familiar or Necromancer animates undead – placing a bit of his energy inside its flesh." She was smiling, but still ready to fire another missile, targeting his heart. "I usually use also some mind control spells and mana restrains. You'll guess why."

She noticed a barely visible frown and a blink, like he was trying to hide his plans or something… It did not matter now, when spells were already invading his body. He was not able to move without her permission now.

But smile vanished from her face, while he just turned around and ran down the alley.

 _How?_ She was too surprised to fire. _Magic resistance?_

She stepped ahead to investigate the surroundings. There was too much blood on the ground where he stood a moment ago. And some strange scratch on the wall.

 _So the bullet went through his arm? Damn it._ She clenched her teeth in anger, and reloaded the gun. _Bad luck, huh? The next one will stuck inside, I'll make sure of it._

* * *

Tracing Tohsaka's familiar was easy, considering his condition. Red-haired woman reloaded her guns on the way and prepared some more from holster hidden on her back, just in case.

There he was, surprisingly, engaged in another fight. She smiled and prepared to shoot, ready to get advantage of this unexpected situation.

Something attacked her from behind, with a strange growl.

"Shit!"

Head of the creature literally exploded, when woman fired at close range; she barely managed to dodge the splinters and stinking tissues. No time for complaining, though, because more were coming.

These were definitely ghouls and other common undead. No darkness or shadows around them, only typical stench of death. Too much of them to just ignore their existence and pass by. She sighed, forced to seek shelter near the wall.

"I suppose they are not yours?" – white-haired familiar said, slowly stepping back, surrounded by ghouls. A lot of corpses were lying already on the ground around him. He knew how to deal with undead creatures.

"If they were mine, you would be already torn apart."

"I'm almost scared."

They stood now back to back, Archer with his swords in hands, and red-haired woman with her guns. She touched the choker for a while, to let her mana flow faster.

"So, ceasefire for now?" – she asked with a thin grin.

"Hmmm… I would like to have anyone but you to cover my back, but it would be an act of idiocy to refuse help right now." His calm voice was encouraging and she found it somehow pleasurable, despite the obvious antipathy in his words.

Archer's blades cut off the heads of nearest creatures with ease. His movements were swift and blows powerful, despite his wounds and condition. It looked like he had fought many difficult battles and got used to be outnumbered and weakened.

She could not longer enjoy the view, soon engaged in her own battle. Two guns now in her hands and magically accelerated body were enough to keep up with this familiar-warrior. Each shot meant one undead fallen at her feet with a hole in his head.

"I hope you have enough bullets" – came from the man behind her.

"Mind your own business."

Their dance started, in the rhythm of gun shots and accompaniment of sword slashes. Strange as it seemed, they worked perfectly together, focused and deadly.

 _Well, that was quick_ , Necromancer thought, when no single undead remained standing. She turned around swiftly and shot Archer again, targeting his chest.

He was expecting something like this, because she found him already jumping back, covering with his twin swords. But, even as fast and well-trained as he was, he could not dodge it from this distance.

_Gotcha!_

She hit the guy somewhere between ribs. He coughed painfully and was not able to retreat anymore, not only wounded, but also affected by her magic.

"My my, I spent two spells on you. It would be a waste to lose you know, so better sit down and let me take care of this wound. Or you will bleed to death."

Although her actions had no sense to him, frustrated, Archer could only nod and let her do as she pleased.


	7. The Dead Have No Rights

_"_ _What a witch…" He sighed heavily, oddly resigned to his fate._

_These words brought a wide smile on Necromancer's face._

_"_ _Sure I am."_

* * *

Memories came back to her in waves; it was like breaking through the wall of darkness. Reminiscences of the attack appeared in her head as a series of flashes. They were somehow incomplete. No, wrong. Something within her was incomplete.

This emptiness. This overwhelming silence. Did it mean…?

When Sakura finally opened her eyes, she was terrified.

"Shirou? Shirou!"

Alarmed by the noise, Aoi came to the room and carefully held her daughter in her arms.

"Shush, dear, you're shouldn't scream or move, you're weakened."

"Where's Shirou? What's happened to him?"

"Sakura, calm down…" Aoi was really surprised, seeing her daughter so disturbed and had no idea what was the cause of her panic. "He stayed in Fuyuki, I spoke with him. Don't worry, he's fine."

"No, he's not." Tears appeared in girl's eyes. "I can't feel him anymore."

"Maybe it's because he's too far away from you? He said he'll be fine and will come after his job is finished."

_Job? Don't tell me that he's planning to…_

Sakura shook her head in protest.

"Stupid Shirou! Playing the hero, again… But he will vanish like that. Rin must come back immediately…"

"She's on her way, but have some problems. There were no tickets and she had to go with transfers. Now she's waiting for typhoon to end, another flight was cancelled."

This was bad. Their familiar was able to stay some time without support, but even he would not last this long.

_I don't want to lose my Shirou third time. I will not stand it._

Sakura swallowed her tears, trying to be strong and cause no more troubles. It was her fault. She failed, completely. Everything Rin had taught her was in vain. She could have been at least able to protect herself. Yet she ended here, useless.

_And how would I face Rin after letting him die like this?_

"Shirou…" She murmured, desperately clenching her fists. _I'm sorry. Please, don't let yourself be killed. Please, survive._

* * *

 _It is almost a creepy dungeon_ , Archer thought, looking around. Like a very old basement or abandoned tunnel. So wet here, traces of some slime on the walls, not to mention the smell of corpses, which the woman used to cast her spells. And rats. Lots of rats, running around on the borders of their little camp.

He was sitting in Japanese way on the cold, stone floor, with his hands tied behind his back. His arm was already healed, but bullet which stuck in his chest was a completely different matter.

They were both resting here, gathering mana through woman's familiars for about two days, if he counted correctly. He could be mistaken, though, tormented by feverish dreams. Being totally exhausted and hungry is not fun at all, but he was enduring it bravely, with his usual stoicism and composure.

"What, you don't like this place, princess?" Red-haired leaned over him, checking the bandage on his chest. Archer noticed that her eyes had unusual color, a very bright shade of blue, like the winter sky of far north. Blood flowed again under her touch and he suspected, that she kept him in bad condition on purpose. She was waiting for her control spells to start working, but it was not as easy as she thought.

"I was in much worse places, if you really want to know. Many times. It's not so bad at all"

Woman chuckled.

"You're really funny. I'm starting to understand why they're keeping you as their pet." She caressed his cheeks in the same manner she would do to the favourite dog. "But you're mine now."

"Magic alone is not enough to make someone yours."

"True, but only in case of human beings. The dead have no rights, you know?"

She stared at him, amazed by expression on his face. He felt offended, deeply, with no doubt. It made her burst out with laughter.

"This is pathetic! The undead pretending to be alive. A mere ghost with fake body acts as if he's human."

"Are we not the same, then?"

He must have hit the spot, because she slapped him hard in response.

"Don't speak of things you have no idea about!" Finally some true emotions on her face, pure anger and determination.

"I have eyes." Archer said calmly. "I can see how you trying to remain human as long as possible. That makes us the same, don't you think?"

Somehow these cold eyes of the woman became even colder.

"There's no way we're the same. I'm in charge here and I'm sure you can feel it right now."

Archer shrugged and pain from the wound reminded him, that it was not a good idea. He had to admit, that he felt her magic flowing within his body and it was somehow similar to the bond he shared with Tohsaka. But it was not complete. Hollow. Like an imitation of connection. No wonder she could not control him through such thin thread.

"All I have to do is to force you to eat some souls" - she continued with a vicious smile, like she was awaiting something enjoyable and funny. "And we will be both well fed and healthy."

"It will lead you nowhere." He responded with complete conviction. It was undeniable fact or he was just this good with bluffing. "This kind of command contradicts my basic nature, it won't work."

She gave him another cruel smile.

"I'm a Necromancer, not Mind Manipulator, I can suck out your consciousness and make you an obedient, empty shell."

"You may try." No change in his behavior. "But it will take some time. And probably we both will be dead long before that."

True, again. She intended to take energy from him, not spending it on him, this never ending fight was too exhausting. Dispose of the troublemaker would be wiser right now. But killing him would also be like admitting the defeat, and she was not yet ready for that. Not after such difficult fight.

Red-haired was observing the man with attention, trying to read his thoughts. Something in his gaze told Necromancer, that he already had a plan. It may be worth listening to.

"So… Will you tell me, what's in your mind, or not?"

* * *

The night was so calm, that he decided to loosen his shawl and catch some fresh air. It was almost the same like years ago, when he was patrolling the city with her. Some cars were crossing lazily the red bridge, distant lights were shining, creating a flickering composition of yellow, red and blue. The town - his town - watched from above, was stunningly beautiful, just as he remembered it.

He sighed, resigned.

This world, this timeline, will die too. There's no point in admiring the view.

But maybe it will not? Everything was different now. Another Master called him for the first time. The girl was a pain, indeed. She was tormenting him even more than Kirei once did. Curse her for touching the most fragile parts of his soul, which he was trying to hide for so long, burrow them deep enough to not be wounded ever again.

He laughed at himself, for being so naïve and stupid.

_You'll never change, Emiya, won't you? It's a childish dream – to be a hero – so you decided to never grow up. And now you must suffer eternally because of it._

_Well, I'm talking to myself. Cú would laugh at me and call me 'a jerk'. Damn, it was a good fight!_

He tried to focus on searching this 'darkness' Bazett was talking about. It was not difficult at all, at least for him. Sakura called him 'Master of Shadows' and it was not far away from the truth. One glance at the whirling Bounded Field was enough for him to know what was happening.

He laughed, again, and it was an insane laugh of someone, who's just lost all hope.

_There's no way of rescue anyone in this timeline. I will witness another end of the world soon._

But something was really different. This time, surprisingly even for himself, he **cared**.

* * *

"You need help, I need mana. We can cooperate. Temporarily. And under specific conditions."

"Oh?" She was rolling a strand of her red hair, considering his words. "It's so easy for you to betray Tohsakas?"

His eyes narrowed, but he did not lost his composure. At least not yet.

"I said: 'under specific conditions', didn't I?"

"So, what are they?" She came closer, to look at him from above. She was visibly enjoying the fact of having her prey on his knees, totally defeated and dependent.

"No aggression towards Tohsaka family. And I'll leave you if sisters come back. I can still support you even after that, but only when there will be no conflict of interest."

Woman chuckled again.

"What a bold offer to hear from someone on the verge of death… What you will give me in return?"

"I will obey you, freely. Within reason, of course."

She had to admit, that it was not that bad and he's already proven himself useful, both in fighting and advising. But she would not agree so easily, without some mocking.

"What if they will not want you back?"

Archer tensed when she started to tease him with her sharp-pointed fingernail. She left some painful scratches on his neck.

"Then I'll stay with you, I suppose."

"So you don't want to die, that's all?" She scratched his cheek in purpose, then wipe away the blood which appeared on his tan skin. "So shameless of you…"

Surprisingly, he smiled in response.

"There's always a time for such… final… solution. It's not wise to not try everything before giving up, right?"

* * *

"Someone was fighting these undead," Bazett said, inspecting the place. "Two persons, at least. I can feel some magic in these bullets, charms and Necromancy."

"And I can feel that our Jerk was here." Lancer was leaning against the wall, apparently bored. "He has indisputable talent to get into trouble."

"Well, well, you admit that he's better than you in something?"

"Indeed." He was thinking for a moment. "Getting into trouble and cooking are two things in which he's better than me. By the way, Bazett… Dinner yesterday was awful."

She stared at him with obviously murderous intention.

"Ok, you will be making next one."

Cú Chulainn laughed at loud and said honestly:

"No way! You want us both dead, Master?"

Bazett snorted, amused, but her mood deteriorated quickly. One glance at the corpses around made her feel sick.

"What a mess… People already started to gossip about zombies… We will have a horde of Executors here soon." She sighed. "But why did Necromancer fight the undead? We have two magi here, fighting over territory?"

"Or Necromancer fighting a vampire."

"Hmmm. I don't know, what is worse, indeed."

"Well, you always have to be ready for zombie apocalypse, Master." Wide smile on Lancer's face, his one red eye open and shining with amusement. "I feel we soon will be having zombies fighting shadows or some other fun like this." He moved slowly and grasped his spear. "Speaking of fun, they're here."

Bazett's runes flickered, when she prepared for defense. It was the first time they managed to actually meet these shadows. Seemingly formless at first glance, they were more or less humanoid in shape. What made them really scary was not their size or power, but overwhelming numbers.

"Let's see what are they made of." Lancer was the first to attack, curious to check effectiveness of his usual fighting style against them. After a few thrust of spear, he clenched his teeth, annoyed. He could kill them with ease, but they were just reshaping into two new creatures with his every blow.

Bazett experienced the same thing soon. She could kill one shadow easily, but two or three appeared immediately in its place.

"We're retreating, Master." It sounded more like an order than anything else. "We need some spiritual magic here, not only fighting spells."

Bazett agreed, already thinking of the way to create an opening to escape.

"I'll use the power of Gáe Bolg, Master, we'll just break through them."

"Wait, not yet. We don't want to destroy everything on the way."

"Soon there will be no one to live in these houses anyway."

"True, but…"

Someone interrupted their discussion and attacked the shadows from behind. Black daggers, lots and lots of them, were falling on the creatures like rain, killing them without mercy. It was surprisingly effective, no monster was able to reshape and split into two new ones after receiving a blow. They were just disappearing.

"I see." Bazett stroked her chin, satisfaction in her voice. "These daggers are Executor's Black keys, after all."

Lancer was looking around, trying to localize the one who helped them, but it was impossible to achieve. This guy is undetectable, when he does not want to be found.

"So, what do you think, Master?"

"That we should meet with this Caren girl again. And I suggest you bring her some flowers for being extraordinarily rude last time."

* * *

"How should I call you? Don't look at me like that, it's necessary for contracting spell."

Archer hesitated. Formally, he was now Shirou Tohsaka, but Sakura was the only person he wanted to use this name. 'Archer', on the other hand, was private to Rin and her mother and he had no intention to change this either.

"You may call me Emiya."

"Emiya? Like Kiritsugu Emiya?"

"You know him?"

"Every freelancer knows about Kiritsugu Emiya." She chuckled, remembering something. "Although it's hard to find the old man now. I was stubborn enough to track the guy and ask him to teach me. But he refused. He hates undead and Necromancy, I wonder why…"

"Hmmm…" Archer was wondering too, but he was already so tired, that concentrating was a hard task. "And what's your name?"

"Taika," she replied shortly, writing terms of their contract on a piece of skin of unknown creature.

"A rare name. From the North, right? And it means 'magic', if I remember correctly…"

"Shut up." She blushed, visibly disturbed and angry for letting him know it. It looked like she exposed her weak point. "Almost finished. I need your blood to sign it."

"You've already got a lot of my blood. I wonder if anything left in my veins."

"What a crybaby…" But Taika stopped teasing and wounding him for fun; she just took some blood from the bandage and mixed it with her own. Archer could feel a sudden flow of energy around them, it seemed that magic was working. "So, we have a deal now. Are you happy?"

"I will be if you untie me."

"You will have to wait." Woman was playing with Archer's hair, visibly enjoying his confusion. "You're adorable in this powerless state."

"What a witch…" He sighed heavily, oddly resigned to his fate.

These words brought a wide smile on Necromancer's face.

"Sure I am."


	8. Promises Are Worse Than Lies

_"_ _Be careful, Caren. That would be the most stupid way to murder a Master… Killed by a sandwich, what a failure."_

* * *

"So you came back?"

Masked 'Servant' looked at the girl, visibly surprised. She caught him in their makeshift kitchen.

"What? You expected I won't?"

"Umm… It's not like that, but…"

He was staring at the priestess, enjoying her embarrassment. Something new appeared in his eyes, a little spark of strange emotion, like joy or amusement. Not his usual, calm cruelty at least.

"I came to hear your concert, Caren. You'll be playing again today, right?"

"Yes, as always," she replied with a barely noticeable blush. "It's my daily routine, I don't even need listeners."

"I know." His eyes were still smiling, a little mockingly. He was too good in reading people's emotion to not notice the fact, that she was playing especially for him last days. "Have you eaten already? I prepared some eggs and toasts…"

She sat down, pure shock on her face.

"You're preparing a meal for me? Why?"

He shrugged, making tea.

"Why not? We have nothing to lose anymore in this timeline, so I can have some fun here, right?"

"Wait, what do you mean?" Amazed, she started to eat without thinking. The smell was just too good.

"Another dead end, I told you already. There's nothing to worry about, let's enjoy our time as long as we still have some sunlight here."

Toast stuck in her throat and she coughed painfully, trying to catch some air.

"Be careful, Caren. That would be the most stupid way to murder a Master… Killed by a sandwich, what a failure."

He seemed unexpectedly cheerful today, not to mention that she did not feel any painful sensation caused by his presence. He was speaking of darkness and, probably, the end of the world, and was doing it so lightly, so optimistically... Destroying must have been truly in his nature.

"Explain it."

"What?"

"No sunlight?" She was eating second toast already and reached for eggs. "This is good…"

"Hmmm." A bit of content in this sound. He sat near the girl and looked at the platter hesitantly. After a while, he took off his shawl, showing white hair and tan face, which would be handsome, if not strange black 'tattoos' on his cheeks. To Caren they looked like tears or thorns. And she did not mind them at all, her own wounds were usually uglier. "There's nothing to explain, really. Something is about to awaken soon. This timeline is lost."

"But what exactly and…?"

"You should expect guests soon, I think." 'Servant' ignored Caren's questions completely and gave her a cup of tea. "They will explain everything better. I know only one thing – that most probably we're not going to survive."

"And you're so calm about it?"

He shrugged.

"Why should I be concerned?"

Caren did not answer immediately; she was observing his face carefully, totally focused. Intelligence and unexpectedly strong will were hidden in these cunning, golden eyes. It was even more than Kirei's look right now, enough to make every creature, especially a Servant, feel uneasy.

"I think that you just have given up already," she said, in obviously provocative manner.

No reaction, only a small movement of arms, not enough to be called a shrug.

"I gave up a long time ago, Caren. Worrying about something I have no influence at all is not like me."

"Why are you so certain that there's nothing you can do?"

"I would have never ended here, having a choice."

"Right, you told me already, that you failed once. But you know what a real man would do in your place? Fight and try to fix it."

He did not say anything, but stood up fiercely, clenching his fists.

"But it seems that you really like this pain of yours," Caren continued, paying no attention to his anger. "You don't want it to stop, admit it at last. You're so used to your suffering, that your existence would lost meaning without it."

 _Oh, it started_ , she thought, feeling the first strong wave of pain coming. It was not a wave, but tsunami, to be honest. _I think I enraged him too much._ Her vision blackened in an instant and her old wounds on forearms opened. Blood was darker than usual, almost black. _Yeah, definitely this is too much…_

But it was also good to know, that he cared, even if only a little and very deep inside. With this conclusion, she fainted, slipped down from the chair and hit the floor.

* * *

Kanshou and Bakuya were already red and slippery with infected blood of the undead. It was not a fight, not even a hunt, rather something like annihilation.

They invaded the warehouse at the docks late in the evening. It seemed deserted from the outside, but Taika's owl was observing it long enough to detect a movement inside. Someone was gathering an army there, slowly moving one creature after another, from different parts of the city, at the same time.

It was a clever tactic, Archer thought. Difficult to detect. Changing inhabitants of all district into undead at once would be, probably, quick and more effective, but it would certainly attract unwanted attention.

Pure instinct saved him from being badly wounded again, when he abandoned the idea of stepping back in the last moment. Bullet passed him and hit the wall, not even reaching the target.

"You shouldn't play with guns if you're so clumsy! You've almost shot me."

Red-haired glanced at him over her shoulder and smiled.

"Crybaby."

"Witch."

Her laughter drowned in the noise of gunshots. Creatures started to successfully surround her, so Necromancer moved slowly to Archer, to have her back protected. She already trusted him enough to feel safe like that, but it was evidently one-sided affection.

"You're not asking why we're destroying them?"

With his range of motion limited now, he was cutting off heads of the undead like a machine, with no noticeable exertion.

"To weaken their creator, of course."

"Good." Taika smirked, and kicked away the most aggressive undead, while reloading her guns. "You know disturbingly much about such creatures. You've fought their kind already?"

It was not really a question, but Archer smiled and answered anyway.

"You don't want to know…"

"I want, that's why I asked." She was waiting for a while, but familiar had no intention to continue this topic. "Anyway, I'm still surprised that you're so eager and obedient with this task."

He shrugged and killed three nearest zombies with a single attack. His whirling blades were deadly as usual and he really seemed to enjoy the job.

"I would be probably doing the same thing with my true Masters right now, so it's fine for me."

"Oh?" Disbelief in her voice, and a little bit of disgust. "Why Tohsakas would bother?"

"They are protectors of these lands, of course. We would be cleaning the streets already, if not your cowardly attack."

"Hey!" Taika turned around and it looked like she wanted to shoot Archer instead of ghouls, but the bullet passed him and reached the creature behind his back. "You should thank me for doing it. It's all your fault after all."

"What is our fault?"

"You're tired already?" Woman smiled viciously. "Your brain is slowing down."

"And you're losing focus." He jumped and landed behind her, beheading two undead dogs. They were not so easy to notice, crawling in the shadows. "So, what have we done to you?"

"Not only to me." She laughed. "You destroyed the Grail and now you can see the results. You were not the only one powered by this big generator. Almost an entire ecosystem existed there."

Archer was thinking for a while, guarding Taika's back in silence. It seemed logical enough to believe. Many kinds of magical creatures could find the presence of the Grail useful, even enough to feed on it. Not to mention the ley lines under the mountain. Something could be here, hidden underground, even before the Grail Wars started. And it seemed that Necromancer could identify at least one of the troublemakers behind this mess.

"And you know the one who creates these undead?"

"Not personally, but yes, I know this bastard." She shot the last zombie with a sigh, visibly fatigued, and approached her 'pet' with a suspicious smile. "I'm going to finish him once and for all. I will have my revenge, trust me."

"Tell me about it."

She laughed and scratched Archer's cheek with a sharp nail, which was almost like a vampire's claw already. He noticed that it was her favourite way of pissing him off and she was enjoying it too much to call it normal. Most parts of his body were already covered with irritating wounds caused by her for fun.

"You must deserve it first."

"Have I not deserved it already?"

"Not yet." Archer felt a sudden impulse, telling him to run away - Taika looked like she changed into a vampire already and wanted to bite him. "It seems that you're not so tired, if you're still able to talk back to me." Her whispering made him shiver. "I'm going to drain the last drop of energy out of you."

He sighed mentally. To tell that he was screwed beyond all hope would be a big understatement.

* * *

She was so fragile, so easy to be broken, that he had to fight the temptation to harm her right now. Actually, he wanted to kill her at this moment, to end this farce as soon as possible, but found himself bandaging her wounds instead.

"Why are you doing this to me, Caren?"

She heard him, and was slowly regaining consciousness.

"Doing what?"

"Disturbing my peace, I suppose…" 'Servant' gave Caren a sad smile. "You're turning my inner world upside down."

He gently grasped her hand. It was pale, small and delicate comparing to his own tanned hand of the warrior. He touched black stains on priestess's skin, excited by her pain.

"They sent you here to suffer, giving nothing in return. You will probably break when this creature awakes completely. They're using you, like a property." A heavy sigh. "And I wonder myself why I don't like it."

"You weren't like this in the beginning, am I right?" Caren's voice was still weak and husky.

"I've always been stupid, certainly. But I guess you're right. Something was different, long ago."

He grimaced, remembering things he wanted to forget. These cursed knives, Exorcist's Black Keys, had done it to him, mostly. His Master was enjoying spiritual experiments and went far enough to messing with magic circuits. He could not visualize nothing else anymore, only these damned daggers…

Caren smiled and said softly:

"You see, this is the difference between us. I was born like this, so it's only natural to use this pain for others."

She did not expect a laughter in response.

"You're a hypocrite, Caren." He smiled, watching her expression. "Yes, you are. We are the same, twisted pain-enjoyers. You want me to fight my fate, while you're accepting your own in silence… You let them use you, just like that." He raised his hand, silencing her, when she tried to speak. "I have an idea. I promise that I will fight for my own good, but you must do the same for you. Do we have a deal?"

She hesitated, overwhelmed by the meaning of his unexpected declaration, but finally agreed. They crossed their little fingers, like children usually do for signing the contract.

"Promises are scary," Caren said suddenly with a strange, sad expression. "Much worse than lies."

"Why is that?"

"Because they give hope."

* * *

Rin was driving a rental car, not paying much attention to speed limits. Magic was speeding the machine up and making it undetectable; the road was straight and almost empty, so she did not need to be excessively focused. She glanced at the man, who was sitting next to her, and sighed heavily.

"Is there anything you find amusing except video games?"

She was angry when she told him to pack his ass and go to Fuyuki with her. She didn't mean it. But it was exactly what Lord El-Melloi II did, most probably to punish her.

"Not really." Even now he was playing something on his portable game consol. "Magical experiments and video games are the most pleasurable things, I don't need much more."

"You're useless as a travel companion, you know?" She was slowly losing patience. He was not particularly grumpy or bothersome, but he did not help her in any way.

"Probably…" Lord paused the device, visibly annoyed, and picked up Tohsaka's phone, which was vibrating in her bag. "Your mother is calling," he announced and placed the phone near her ear without asking permission.

"Hey, what are y..?! Hi, Mom." Rin quickly changed her tone of voice. She missed Aoi and it was good to hear her after all disturbances during the journey. "Yes, I'm on the way. Why to Fuyuki first? You don't want me to visit Sakura?"

Something crackled in the receiver and Tohsaka was grateful that her companion did not disturb their conversation with extra game noises.

"Wait, what?! What does it mean 'no connection'? Where did this idiot go?"

Calm voice of Aoi came from the other side, explaining the details.

"Yes, Sakura is right. I'm going, don't worry. Damn it, I've missed my exit, I hate highways… Yes, Mom, I know, I'll be there soon and find him. Thanks, bye!"

Tires squealed horribly, when Tohsaka, ignoring all possible rules, turned suddenly and rushed back, upstream, to the nearest exit.

Her companion whistled with admiration and returned to playing.

"That was something, Rin." She could see clearly smile on his face, illuminated by the screen. "I wish you'll be this passionate about our work."

"I will be, one day, if you finally prove yourself useful."

Lord El-Melloi II chuckled and this fact alone was enough to make Tohsaka feel uneasy.

"I'm going to hold you to that, Rin."


	9. Reunion

_"_ _Your familiar just doesn't like people or he makes an exception for me?"_

_"_ _It should be easy to guess for a self-proclaimed genius like you."_

* * *

This was the last thing he would ever expect. Rin just came in and started a fight.

Barriers raised around this place were nothing to her, she just dispelled them and walked in. She was protected by her own spells, which made her almost undetectable till now. Taika had no time to hide, gather the undead or use magic. Red-haired woman managed only to pull out the gun.

 _So she is this powerful, when she doesn't spend her mana on unnecessary things, like maintaining my existence_. Archer did not even dare to interfere; he was just staring at his true Master, pressing his hand to his chest, where Necromancer's bullet stuck. Sharp pain he felt right now must have been caused by two contradictory contracts, fighting each other. _And she's so beautiful like this…_

The way Rin was moving, so elegant and full of confidence in her own skills, reminded Archer of Tokiomi. She really inherited his talent, it was clearly visible right now.

Tohsaka made a shield with one of her jewels and Taika's bullets couldn't penetrate it. Rin was the one who had a total control over this so called fight. All she had to do now was to wait for Necromancer to empty the magazines, and answer with _Gandr._

So she did. Red-haired had to use her vampiric speed to dodge, but still one or two spells wounded her. Archer stepped back, just in case, to not get accidentally infected by her blood.

"Yeah, you may runaway. I'll get you later." Tohsaka's burning gaze rested on Archer at last. "Why are you standing there? Come here and take my mana. You my vanish at any moment, you idiot!"

Miserable and confused as he was right now, he still reacted with a thin smile.

"So you really want me back, Rin?"

He did not have to ask, to be honest. Energy was already coming through their connection, healing him both physically and emotionally.

"Of course I do, what a stupid question was that?" A little bit of irritation in her voice. "What happened, Archer?"

"I… will explain later…" He was staring at someone behind Tohsaka's back and it was not a very nice or welcoming gaze.

Archer needed a while to recognize the man. He barely resembled the boy, who was the Master of Rider fourteen years ago. But the most annoying thing was that they looked with Rin so alike. A married couple of eccentric magi would be the best thing to describe it. Their long hairs, their clothing style, colors they chose… Archer have never felt so annoyed and, probably, jealous before.

"I see that you've finished already, Rin." Lord El-Melloi II looked around the lair. He noticed the blood on the ground and smiled. Tohsaka knew that he was a skilled alchemist, but even she did not expect that the guy would carry test-tubes for samples with him. Yet he had some and was using them right now. "Don't mind me, I will take care of myself."

Archer was still observing intruder, a little tensed. Rin punched her familiar in the arm, demanding attention.

"Why are you so rude?" – she asked.

"What do you want me to do, Rin? Greet him with 'good evening' or something?"

"That would be a good start, I suppose."

He sighed and bowed slightly, welcoming their guest.

"Master of Rider."

"Servant Archer," Lord El-Melloi II replied, equally coldly.

"So you're really know each other." Tohsaka rolled her eyes, feeling the tension, growing rapidly between the two.

"Indeed. This one defeated my Rider..."

"In a fair duel," Archer added politely, but antipathy was visible in his every movement. "I'll wait outside, Rin." He left, ignoring the man completely.

Lord El-Melloi II sighed heavily, pretending that his feelings were harmed badly at this moment.

"Your familiar just doesn't like people or he makes an exception for me?"

"It should be easy to guess for a self-proclaimed genius like you."

* * *

"Put them down, Archer. You must be tired."

He smirked, grabbing a suitcase from her hand.

"Rin, the day when I will not be able to carry your bags may come, but it is not this day." He did not give her time to protest. "But do not expect me to carry his baggage." A short pause. "Please."

Tohsaka smiled and came in first, showing her Instructor the guest room. She came back quickly, caught Archer in the corridor and hugged him without warning.

This time he did not object and let his emotions flow freely between them. He was probably too tired to control it. Rin smiled, absorbing this wordless message.

"Say it."

"What for? You feel it clearly and you can read my mind to be sure."

"I'm a woman, Archer. And women love to hear such things."

He sighed heavily, lowered his head and whispered to her ear:

"Don't leave me like that ever again, Rin. I missed you so badly that it hurt."

Tohsaka had to admit that she did not expect him to surrender so easily. She blushed, ashamed. Archer had to be in truly fatal form to not engage her in quarrel or talk back to her.

"I'm sorry. You must tell me everything, ok?"

"I will. I was sure that you not need me anymore."

"Moron."

"Whoa…" Someone almost bumped into them, long blue hair waved in the air. Archer muttered, barely noticeable. It was their fault to block the corridor, after all. "What is it? Little Lady is here? And the cook is back?!" Cú Chulainn ran up the stairs, sharing good news out loud. "You've heard it, Bazett?! We're saved!"

* * *

They both sat on the couch, freshened up but visibly tired. Archer was first to fall asleep, although he was heroically trying to answer Rin's questions, at least as long as he could hear and understand them.

"Hey, you're slipping down!" But she did not push him away when his head landed on her lap. He was sleeping so calmly and deeply, that neither her screams nor movements could disturb his rest. "Poor thing, the witch was treating you badly, wasn't she?"

She smiled, feeling home again, at last, and began to stroke his hair. Something caught her attention soon, strange scratches on his skin. Tohsaka checked them carefully and found more – it seemed that his entire neck and back were constantly wounded. She clenched her teeth in sudden attack of anger.

 _I will kill you for that, bitch_ , Rin thought and froze, amazed by her own reaction. She didn't know she can be so emotional inside. How did Lord El-Melloi II put it? That this kind of passion is not like her?

"Let it be." She smiled and closed her eyes, feeling sleepy due to Archer's warmth and calm breath. "I did not give anyone permission to touch him, after all."

It was already decided. Inevitable. When they meet again with the witch, one of them will have to die.


	10. Last Rays of Sunlight

_"_ _I've learned long ago that people are only flesh and bones, a rotting meat powered by chemistry and electricity. And heart is just a pump, there's nothing more inside."_

* * *

"I have a face of the criminal, they will arrest me just for walking down the street, you know?"

"Nope, I won't let anyone arrest you. So please enjoy the weather."

Small silver-haired girl and a tall man with strange tattoos on his face were walking by the river. Weather was indeed perfect for this kind of activity, clear sky and no single cloud to break the perfect blue.

"Sunlight is burning my eyes, I'm not used to it."

"Stop complaining, you're ruining the moment." Caren was getting more irritated with his every word.

"I can't see anything... I think my eyes are bleeding right now."

"Just shut up already or I'll bind you with Shroud of Magdalene."

He chuckled, trying to protect his eyes from the sunlight. It was not that he didn't enjoy the walk, he found it pleasant and even joyful.

But his eyes, which were watching only starless sky for ages, had a different opinion about this escapade.

"You're cruel, Caren."

"No." She sounded decisively and uncompromisingly, a distant echo of Kotomine in her voice. "I'm not going to let anyone spoil my fun, that's all. By the way, remember to behave yourself. I don't know how long ago you've been around people for the last time, so try to not piss everyone off ."

"What? You've restrained me already so much that I would have to be in really suicidal mood to tease anyone. I'm not a complete idiot, Caren."

"You are."

He smiled, forcing himself to look at the sky. He could barely see rays of sunlight through the curtain of tears, and it was agonizing. Yet he accepted them, entirely, along with the pain.

They were the last ones here, after all.

* * *

Warm touch of the sunlight woke him up. He needed few seconds to recognize this room, the smell of old wood, books and magic. Then sounds came: familiar and monotonous ticking of the antique clock and birds singing in the garden. Rin was here too, smell of her hair and warm breath made Archer feel extremely happy.

_I'm home._

"How do you feel now?" She asked with a sleepy voice. "You've been resting for about six hours."

"Oh." He stood up, embarrassed. There were no more scratches on his skin, Tohsaka healed him completely while he was asleep. "Six hours, really? I'm sorry for keeping you here for so long."

"It's all right, don't worry." She stretched herself out and yawned. "Thanks to you I had an excuse to take a nap after the journey." Another yawn, stronger than before. "Oh, and mother will bring Sakura today. She's almost totally healed. They speeded up the process, because she insisted to see you immediately, you troublesome fool."

Archer smiled, his expression was warm and kind.

"So, dinner for two more persons. I'll be quick with that."

"Good. I really missed your cooking."

"Hmmm."

It was good to see Archer content, Rin thought, watching him on the way to kitchen. She knew well that future was uncertain and a difficult battle awaited them all, but still she let herself enjoy the moment. She was keeping her promise from four years ago, to take pleasure in every second of peace and joy. Now they were together and nothing else mattered.

Archer quickly reclaimed his culinary kingdom and was giving his best to celebrate their reunion. He was enjoying his job, trying to not overthink their current problems. It was not the right time to do so, they all decided to take a break from troubles at least till dinner.

"What's wrong?" He glanced at Cú Chulainn, who slipped in the kitchen like a blue panther. "You came to help?"

"Sure, if you want to have total chaos here." Lancer winked and smiled widely. "I just wanted to say, that we invited someone. Two persons who may help us. We will discuss everything at the dinner."

Something in his voice, strange hesitation, alarmed Archer.

"It's unusual for you to have guests. What's happened?"

"Well, let's say we want to erase the first impression."

"Oh?" Archer frowned, even more suspicious than before. Something was wrong with these enigmatic 'guests' and he felt that he would not like them. "So you intent to use Rin's hospitality and my cooking to make them forgive you?"

"Something like that." Cú Chulainn shrugged, evacuating. "You don't have to be so mean, jerk."

Archer only shook his head and measured more rice, hoping that this was the last update and he would not run out of ingredients.

"I wonder if this house remembers any big dinner like this. So…" He looked around. Most things were ready and waited for their turn, rice was warming up slowly. "Right, our precious Instructor."

He sighed and went upstairs. Some strange noises were coming from the Lord's room. The door was open but Archer knocked anyway.

"Oh, it's you?" El-Melloi II was sitting on the bed, playing video game. And he was losing. Archer did not remember to have TV in this room. The guy had to be addicted to take one with him to Japan. "You came to keep an eye on me or something?"

"No, I came to ask about your food preferences. You're not a vegetarian or something?"

"No, everything edible is fine." He muttered angrily, when his character in fighting game got knocked out twice. "Damn it, I must level him up again."

"Not necessarily," Archer said unexpectedly. "Bent knees should do the job."

"What?"

"Look, his legs are not protected and this spinning maneuver should be enough to close the distance."

Lord El-Melloi II stared at Archer over his shoulder. After a short while, he threw second pad to him.

"Come, try to beat me, if it's so easy."

Archer measured the controller in his hands, visibly hesitating. He would not have any doubts, if not the dinner left unattended in the kitchen.

"I have no more than five minutes for this," he said, fighting temptation to accept the challenge.

Long-haired magus smiled mockingly.

"If you're really good, it will be enough to prove it."

* * *

Sakura came with Aoi soon, and she almost started to cry, seeing both Rin and Archer safe. Sakura's and Archer's hug was very warm, but there was something more... The two must have been talking mentally and Rin tried very hard to not be jealous, that they still hid some secrets.

Lancer's and Bazett's guests came soon after, making everyone inside the mansion feel uneasy. Archer tensed a little, facing his future and broken self, but soon the two started to ignore each other with some kind of calm resignation. Nobody was trying to pick up a fight, they gathered here for a common purpose. And meal was delicious enough to keep them all in good moods, especially Aoi, who always dreamed about home full of people and finally got what she wanted.

"So…" Rin started, like the head of the family should. "We have some zombies in town to destroy. What do we know about them?

Archer was first to answer her question.

"A vampire creates them. Necromancer was also bitten and wants her creator dead. It seems that this guy is somewhere around."

"He's not." It was Lord's El-Melloi II voice. He only pretended to not listen and was more involved than he seemed to be. "I checked the blood of this witch. I found an interesting theory in Lord Kayneth's notes on Necromancy, but I could not prove it till now. Her blood cells are dead from the outside and it means that her 'parent' vampire is no more. But she's not dead or changed completely, so…"

"So the Dead Apostle, who started the chain, still exists somewhere," Archer finished automatically. "This is bad, I was hoping we have a minion here."

"So we need to find the lair." Bazett reached out for another portion. She explained once that only Archer's food could make her THIS hungry. "There's no other choice."

"We have no time for it." Archer was stroking his chin, remembering something. "Dead Apostles have powerful territorial protection, kind of Bounded Fields, full of shadows and darkness. No one is able to cross them uninvited, even very skilled magi may seek the entrance for years…"

Nameless 'Servant' chuckled quietly, breaking the silence after Archer's explanation. All eyes focused on him.

"I've seen this field. It's huge, it covers entire Mount Enzou."

"I see." Sakura smiled gently to him. "You truly are the Master of Shadows."

"And maybe you can break through this barrier?" – Lancer asked, playing with a shrimp, teasing Bazett, who did not manage to grab it first from the plate.

"I don't know. I've never tried it."

"So we will try," Caren decided. "But how we will kill this thing?"

Again Archer took the explaining part on himself.

"It depends what kind of creature it is. Vampires are hard to kill, because they're messing with the flow of time."

"Like Gáe Bolg does." Cú Chulainn smiled, sharing this last shrimp with desperate Bazett at last. "Or Fragarach. We've used it many times against them and it worked."

"It may, unless it's a shapeshifter."

"Or something worse."

Rin sighed heavily.

"Ok, so we discussed this Dead Apostle, but what about the shapeless darkness? What is it anyway?"

Lancer and his Master exchanged meaningful glances. Bazett took a deep breath and said:

"I'm afraid these are the remnants of the Grail. Or rather incorporeal parts of the Servant who was imprisoned within it."

These, who were the most affected by the blackening, were now visibly worried, except the nameless guy. His face remained emotionless and he was looking through the window, interested only in owl's hooting coming from the garden.

"So it probably cannot be wounded normally," Sakura concluded, a little nervous. "But powerful magic should be enough."

"We may ask Executors for help," Aoi suggested, looking at Caren. Tohsakas always had friends in the Church and she did not doubt their loyalty.

"We don't need them." The priestess said with full conviction. "We have a power of many Executors here, we will use it if necessary."

Rin noticed that Caren's 'Servant' glanced at the girl with a strange emotion, similar to sadness.

_He is worried? Afraid of unleashing his powers?_

Tohsaka, already tired and almost with a headache from information overload, clapped her hands and stood up.

"Right. We can barely call it a plan, but it's still something. I suggest everyone to take some rest while we still can."

They agreed and went to their rooms, only Archer was still with Rin, cleaning and just keeping her company. She drank some wine, sat on her favourite chair and stretched out her legs.

"Archer… You're not curious about him?"

"You mean this almost Counter Guardian?" He glanced at Tohsaka and she nodded. "No. Why should I?"

"To know what exactly happened in that timeline? You don't want to talk with him?"

He was thinking for a while, then closed his eyes and said calmly:

"I don't think we have anything to talk about. Or rather I don't think we should talk in the first place."

Rin understood. Other timelines had no meaning for him now, he had suffered enough already because of them. It was insatiable curiosity of Tohsaka that made her ask such questions and disturb his peace.

"I see. But I have some questions for him, if you don't mind."

"I don't." Archer smiled; Rin knew that he was not lying and appreciated how much he trusted her. "I'll go feed the cats with leftovers, so take your time."

"And if it takes much longer?"

His smile widened, like he was expecting some fun.

"Then I'll kick our Lord's ass once more." He chuckled, seeing her surprise. "In a video game, don't worry."

"You're both childish… " She rolled her eyes, but also smirked. "I have bad luck for guys, definitely."

"It could be worse, Rin, so don't complain."

"True." She finished her wine and stood up, to find some grumpy Servant and question him mercilessly.

* * *

Cats were nowhere to be found and Archer could tell easily, what terrified them enough to abandon the meal. Even he felt a sudden shiver, when undead owl flew down from the tree, leading him to the street. The fact that bullet in his chest started to resonate painfully was even worse.

"What do you want, Taika?"

Red-haired approached him with a thin smile.

"What a rude welcome from my pet. Tell me you missed me."

"We had a deal, I'm not your 'pet' anymore." Archer's voice was colder than ice.

"Oh, really? But you're still have my bullet in your chest, right? Do you want it to explode?"

If gaze could kill, Taika would be already dead. She laughed.

"Relax, I'm on your side now." Woman tried to reach his neck, but Archer stepped back, not letting her touch him. "I've heard your little council, I know what you are planning to do. I want this bastard dead, so I'll help you."

He did not believe her, already aware of her treacherous nature.

"And you came here just to inform me about it?"

"Yes. So you won't let your possessive sisters kill me if we meet on the battlefield. That's all I ask."

Archer gave her a strange look, full of doubts and hidden anger.

"Why are you like this, Taika?" – he asked, sorrow in his voice. "You have no human emotions?"

"I suppose I don't." She looked him in the eyes, piercing him with this northern blue cold. "I've learned long ago that people are only flesh and bones, a rotting meat powered by chemistry and electricity. And heart is just a pump, there's nothing more inside."

Suddenly Archer realized that he cannot hate her anymore. He just felt sorry for her.

"No one has ever loved you?"

"No, it would not make any sense, right?" She smiled. "I find this so-called 'bond' of the three of you very interesting. I think I will be observing it longer."

"Don't you…"

Archer could not finish the sentence, when shadows came from beneath the Mount Enzou in a sudden explosion. It looked like an eruption of volcano, but its cone was filling the sky with darkness.

Taika reached out her arm to let her owl sit on it. She caressed rotten head of the bird.

"So it's started."


	11. Lost Timeline – Story of Defiled Hero

_"_ _If you put it this way, it means that people, who do what they desire and prioritize their loved ones over society, are villains. And among them you are the top villain, Rin Tohsaka."_

* * *

"You really want to talk?"

He was leaning against the wall, with his arms crossed, in a pose she knew just too well. But there was no way she could take him for her Archer now, even from the great distance or in complete darkness. Not anymore.

"Yes." Tohsaka brought a bottle of wine and two glasses with her. "You're not as evil as you're trying to act, so you won't make me change my mind."

"Evil?" 'Servant' smiled, visibly amused. "What an unusual word to hear from you. You see, people have strange way of separating good from wrong. Blind force, crushing everyone who does not follow the rules, is called Order and Justice. And we call Evil people, who just want to be happy. What an odd world it is, don't you think?"

Rin tensed a little, not because of his words, powers or strange aura around him. It was not that he was different from Archer, because he's been infected by the Grail's mud or indoctrinated by false priest. Something changed deep inside, like the core of his former existence had been removed and replaced by something strange and primordial. Rin could not tell what it was exactly, but even she reacted to his presence with some kind of inner distress.

"We have no clear definition of Evil," he continued, looking at Rin with these scary, but somehow fascinating red eyes. "It's rather a big bag to which we throw everything that does not fit us. If you put it this way, it means that people, who do what they desire and prioritize their loved ones over society, are villains. And among them you are the top villain, Rin Tohsaka."

"Is it because I wanted to save my family?"

"Exactly. Because you changed their fate. You summoned Archer sooner, to save your loved ones, but you created only dead ends."

"What do you mean?"

'Servant' smiled again and told her everything - the story of every Fuyuki timeline he had already destroyed.

One: Gilgamesh tried to use Sakura as a vessel, but she absorbed the evil hidden within the Grail and went on a rampage, destroying much more than the city.

Two: Rin tried to save Archer but was possessed instead and made Fuyuki her playground.

Three: Rin and Sakura won the Grail War together and their misinterpreted wish changed the world into zombieland.

Four: Ilya won the Grail War but her misunderstanding with Saber reset the history and Fuyuki was sent back to Middle Ages...

Five: Bazett won the War and ended killing every single person on the planet, except Lancer and herself.

Six: The Grail activated emergency system and damaged ley lines of the city by summoning seven new Servants against remaining teams; they violent fights destroyed Fuyuki completely.

Seven: A Ruler class Servant was summoned to force remained teams to fight blackened Archer, who was sniping everyone on sigh.

Eight: Servant Medusa was blackened due to Assassin's manipulation and city was soon turned to ashes by the two.

Nine: Assassin infected all Servants; they blackened soon and ruled together the ruins of Fuyuki.

Every single story was a pure madness for her. And more were coming.

"Stop it, please." Tohsaka rubbed her forehead, dazed. "You really remember everything?"

'Servant' nodded and looked away. He did not want her to pity him.

"Is there any sense, any moral in all these stories?"

That was the question every Tohsaka probably would ask. This family was always trying to find logic, even in the greatest absurd.

"I was trying to find it myself." He shrugged. "To be honest, there seems to be one regularity: things were getting much worse when you abandoned him."

 _Him_ , Tohsaka noticed. _Not 'me'. They're not the same person. Or maybe he doesn't even recognize himself as a person anymore._

Unexpectedly, his expression softened for a short while.

"This guy pretends to be free, but he is so hopeless and dependent. He devoted himself to you, completely. Do not hurt him. Please."

"I have no intention of hurting him." She blushed, not exactly knowing why. "Why are you so concerned about him?"

'Servant' chuckled dryly and it was not a pleasant sound.

"He's the only one who was saved. Maybe it's temporary, but still… He alone had enough luck to be normal for a while."

Pain in his voice was for Rin to hard to bear.

"So… from which sequence of events you came?" – she asked to break the silence. "What happened?"

"You really want to know?"

"Yes." No hesitation in her voice.

"Why?"

"People learn about past to not make the same mistakes again. Isn't this obvious?"

"Maybe…" He glanced at her without particular reason. "You really should sit down."

So she did, on the floor behind him, and opened the bottle. She winked cheerfully, inviting him to sit next to her.

"Come, join me."

_Rin Tohsaka… always doing what she wants._

"Why not…" 'Servant' sit and tasted the wine. It was sweet, its aroma reminded him of sunlight and soil. He took a deep breath and started his story.

* * *

"So… In the timeline of my origin, Rin Tohsaka never came to the cave under Mount Enzou. Moreover, she did not even intend to do so. She chose to join her sister and this dying boy, supply Rider with mana and continue the War. What? Don't look at me like that, I have no idea what she was thinking back then.

I had my own troubles, when Kotomine forced me to guard the Grail. I have no idea how long it took for the curse to take me over. Few hours? A day? Maybe few days? I think I must have lost my mind for some time, because I was almost ready to beg Kirei to let me go.

I don't really remember how we formed the contract. Everything was dizzy and years had to pass before I understood what exactly had happened in this cave. My Reality Marble changed to wastelands of corrupted mud and something invaded my magic circuits. I was not the same Servant anymore, but I did not know it yet.

Kotomine found a way to use my insanity against me and used his Command Seals in very tricky way. Only by hurting someone I was free from constant pressure and torment. First I've tried to hurt myself and he let me, finding it 'pathetic but amusing'. I went too far one day, so he changed the command. Causing pain to others became the only option for me.

I remember that I asked him once, why he's doing it. Kotomine said, simply and honestly, that he wanted to check something. To check how far he could go, to find the ultimate limit.

After a few, short but intensive, 'taming sessions' I was ready to join the War with my new Master. He was accustomed to the tactics of Assassin class, so he was using me the same way. Killing Masters was just too easy. Ilya died first, Bazett soon after. Their powerful Servants just disappeared, helpless and frustrated. I had some sweet time with Matou Masters - they were already used to the pain, so they could keep me in good condition for some time.

And then, to finally win the Fifth Grail War, I killed the last obstacle of this timeline. Rin Tohsaka. It was an extremely brutal and painful death, worth the culmination of this farce.

Short after that day I started to enjoy the pain in every way. It was not difficult anymore.

Kirei betrayed Gilgamesh and got the Grail for himself. But it was not the end of my pathetic service. I suppose he included me somehow in his horrid wish, because I stayed by his side, to watch and enjoy every twisted plan he put into effect. I felt so numb already, that it was fine for me…

World did not end, but was not a pleasant place anymore. Kotomine proceeded with his experiments and was restless in his search. He destroyed my magic circuits almost completely, changed them to his liking - I cannot visualize any projection except his Black Keys now. He found it very funny and taught me how to use them, how to infect others with mud and disease.

But I have no idea how this stupid timeline ended. I escaped. I wished to be free from him so much, that I sell myself – again – for the most stupid reason possible.

I can only destroy, but World still found me useful. Strange, isn't it?

Unfortunately, World also wanted to experiment on me.

I quickly noticed two things – that I'm not a proper Counter Guardian and that I'm sent only to dead ends, timelines which have to be completely destroyed. I was not even a spirit anymore, anti-heroic or other, not Avenger-like thing, although my existence would not be possible if not this pitiful creature. I became something like… a part of elemental force. Of pure destruction, put into shell of a Guardian to be easy controlled.

I lost my name, but no memories. And, unfortunately, not connection to this world. Kotomine was summoning me, in every possible timeline. I was mostly Assassin class, or Archer, sometimes Berserker happened… and it was crazy, even for me.

My stupid sacrifice was in vain and my pathetic story keeps repeating itself eternally, from end to end. I got used to it, to be honest. All ends of the worlds are the same, after all. Even my internal world became empty like starless sky."

* * *

"I think I can fully understand you now." Voice of the girl broke the silence. "When one suffers, it's easy for him to despise life, they say. But you were trying hard. And you did nothing wrong."

They turned around to look at Caren. She was also sitting on the floor, listening to his story. None of them noticed when she came, but it seemed that she heard everything.

"You did nothing wrong," priestess repeated and came closer, just enough to grasp the hand of her 'Servant'. "Right, Miss Tohsaka?"

"Yes," Rin answered, simply and honestly, grabbing his other hand. "It is not your fault. Thank you for sharing this story with me. It helped. A lot."

He sighed, resigned.

"If it has any meaning right now…"

To confirm his words, darkness exploded from Mount Enzou into the night sky, covering the stars and changing the landscape to one he knew best.

It was an image of dying world.


	12. Street Fight

_"_ _Miss Sakura is right, Little Lady. It's a damned end of the world, after all. There's no need to hesitate anymore."_

* * *

"So, what exactly is happening?" – Lancer asked in a carefree manner, leaning on his spear.

They all gathered at the gate of Tohsaka residence to observe a panic growing in the town below and discuss their tactics. Cone of darkness coming from the temple was spilling on the sky, creating a dome around the entire city. The army of undead came out from their hideouts and was spreading across Fuyuki, killing everyone on the way, hand in hand with horde of shadows.

"This is a Bounded Field," Lord El-Melloi II said, his hair and coat were waving in the wind, caused by the strong mana flow. "This city will be cut off from the world completely within few minutes."

"So it's up to us then." Archer smirked, although not with real joy. "At least nobody will bomb us here or send an army."

"We must exterminate these filth and save the citizens." Rin frowned, fighting with growing irritation. "We should divide into groups to make it quick."

"Right. I'll take care of communication between the groups." Lord gave Tohsaka a strange grin when she stared at him. "What? You wanted me to be useful, so it's time to reap what you sow."

Nameless 'Servant' was losing his typical composure. Visibly excited, he was trembling slightly, enjoying the pain and fear which was coming from fleeing people.

"Caren. Restrain me."

"What?" She glanced at him, utterly surprised.

"It's too much, I don't want to go berserk." A wild, predatory smile. "Not yet."

"Second," she ordered, lowering his power to the point when only control over shadows and some battle potential remained. "Better?"

"Much better." He took a deep breath and grasped gently the tips of Caren's fingers. "Thank you."

"We will be covering you from above and clearing the path," Sakura said, already dressed in her battle outfit, a bow in her hand. "Right, Shirou?"

Archer nodded, considering this the best possible course of action at the moment.

"Are you sure, Sakura?" Rin was hesitant. "You're not fully recovered yet."

"And I won't be if we all die here."

Lancer laughed. When he spoke, his voice was full of admiration.

"Miss Sakura is right, Little Lady. It's a damned end of the world, after all. There's no need to hesitate anymore. And she will have our jerk with her."

Archer rolled his eyes and Sakura smiled at the view.

"So I suppose I will be going with Rin," Lord El-Melloi II tried to say, but was mercilessly interrupted.

"No way. You'll stay with Sakura too. I will team up with Caren and we'll go from the left side." She sounded decisive but still glanced at Archer and waited for his approval. She did not want him to feel rejected or something.

 _I trust your skills and judgement, Rin_ – he spoke right into her mind. _And someone should keep an eye on the priestess and this guy, so go._

"Ok, and we'll go from the right then." Bazett put on her black glove – a visible sign that a fight is about to start. "Don't forget about barrier around house, Rin. And I think we should… Wait, what is that?"

Something was raising up from the temple grounds, a monstrous figure, covered in shadows and darkest than the night.

They all froze, shaken by the view. A heavy silence was hanging around them, until nameless 'Servant' decided to speak, nonchalant as usual.

"I told you already… it's useless."

* * *

Bazett looked a bit pale and miserable when she started to speak.

"I beg you… Please tell me that you see a dragon too."

"Yes, we can see it."

"Good, I thought I've lost my mind." A short moment of silence. "Wait... so it truly IS a bloody DRAGON?"

"Actually it is mostly likely a Dead Apostle with shapeshifting ability," 'Servant' said, no emotion in his voice. He was examining the creature with all his supernatural senses. "Furthermore… it absorbed remnants of the Grail's mud. This is the first time I see something like this. Nice hybrid, indeed."

"Great." Tohsaka did not even try to hide her annoyance. "Just great."

Another moment of awkward silence was interrupted by the powerful roar. It sounded like a thunder, promising painful and inevitable death. Like wrath of nature incarnated.

"Meh, it's not as huge as the monster summoned by Caster during the Fourth Grail War." Disappointment in El-Melloi's voice seemed somehow out of place. Probably he was trying to cheer them up, but few could understand his specific sense of humor.

"No, definitely not" - Archer agreed. "But it's awesome." He smiled like delighted kid. "I've always wanted to see a dragon."

"Many people, who said it, died soon after, jerk." But Lancer's eyes were shinning as well, observing the creature. "We should go kill it before it regains full strength and starts to breathe fire or something."

"So what we'll do now?" - Sakura asked, trying to bring them back to earth.

"Summon the dragonslayer?" Archer shrugged. "We don't have a powerful sword, so… Saint George should be good for the task. Or Beowulf. No, better summon Siegfried, Rin! Yes, he's the best one, after all."

Rin sighed, it was evidently not funny for her.

"Just shut up already, Archer."

"Is not Susanoo more suitable to this region?" – Lord El-Melloi II chuckled, captivated by this ridiculous idea.

"Noooo, I think Siegfried will be the best." Archer smiled again.

"Archer!"

"Jerk," Lancer cut off this meaningless chit-chat. "If it has a heart, my spear can pierce it."

"Or Fragarach." Bazett was ready to battle. "We go and you cover us."

"All right, let's go."

* * *

"So…" Two thin blades appeared in 'Servant's' hands and short spell enlarged them to proper weapons. He smiled, a pure joy on his face and in burning red eyes. Destruction was really making him happy. "I'll take care of the shadows, you'll kill the undead."

"Deal." Lancer and Bazett answered like one and stood next to him, facing the enemy. A horde was coming down the street, a mass of creatures, mindlessly moving forward. Only about ten meters of space left between them.

Rin, armed with her sword and magic, was guarding Caren. Priestess was not very useful on the battlefield, but she insisted on being here. She had the right to do so, like everyone in Fuyuki who wanted to protect their home. And she was the only one able to control this destructive force in form of Counter Guardian.

But she was in pain, Tohsaka noticed quickly. Nameless one warned them, that Caren may not survive the manifestation of the evil entity, which invaded the city in dragon form.

"Don't you need more power?" – Caren asked her companion, but he refused politely.

"No, it's more than enough for now." A little bit of worry in his voice. It looked like he did not want her to suffer. "Keep it for later."

And then first missiles came, beams of purple energy, cleaning the way almost perfectly. All that team on the ground had to do, was to proceed without hesitation and finish off the survivors.

"It's still a long way ahead us," Lord El-Melloi II said, standing on the roof with Archer and Sakura - not too close to the edge, as they noticed with amusement. "It works perfectly, I must admit, but you'll be running out of mana soon. Not to say that Bazett and the rest need to have some strength left for the main event."

"So what do you have in mind?" Sakura, connected with her familiar almost entirely, shot another arrow. Having Archer's eyes, strong arms and composure was more than useful, she thought.

"This." Magus gave them a small bottle. "Drown a tip of an arrow, ordinary one, in this. And the dead should burn like torches."

"Should?" Archer did not miss hesitation in his words, but decided to try out this mixture anyway.

 _Rin, tell everyone to step back_ , he warned his Master mentally. _Hell is coming._

 _Wh..?_ But she listened and stared at the incoming arrows, amazed and somehow terrified. _What did you just do? It was great!_

Sakura smiled, satisfied with the effect. For the undead this fire was more destructive than reinforced Caladbolg. And two missiles hit them at once.

"I think I'm starting to like it," she said and Archer chuckled.

 _Tohsaka's genom awakened_ , he thought, forgetting that their minds were connected completely. In return he received a punch in the head. _Yes, I'm definitely right._

* * *

They almost broke through the city on their way to temple, unharmed, and started to believe in victory, when chaos started. Vampire or not, this thing was, after all, a dragon, cunning and powerful creature. It saw them coming, guessed what they had planned, and decided to act in advance.

"The tail! It's moving!" – Caren shouted first, her 'Servant' stepped back immediately to shield her. "Take cover!"

Lancer ran to protect Bazett and Rin had to rely on her spells. Black tail smashed the buildings around them with ease. But it was not enough. The dragon waved his ragged and too small wings, to raise the front part of his body, and opened his jaws.

 _Oh no, oh no, oh no…_ Two bowmen were trying to distract the monster with exploding arrows, but it ignored them completely and breathed at the town.

Sudden cold in the air. A stream of shadow and mud. And smell of death.

 _I can't see them, Archer_ , Sakura panicked. _Where are they?_ _Rin!_

They were trying to contact her together, connected eyes were searching the ruins, but could not spot anyone from the team.

Sakura tensed and withdrew from Archer's mind.

"Go, Archer. Go help them."

"Are you sure?"

"Go, you're needed down there."

"We'll be fine," Lord El-Melloi II assured and Archer could feel his magic circuits activated. They were not impressive, but it was all they have.

Without any more delay, white-haired familiar grabbed his corrupted swords along with the bow and ran down to find them.

* * *

 _Great, it seems that we've been separated_. _I hope they're fine._

Tohsaka was – almost - fine, her magical shield turned out to be durable enough to keep her safe. Yet she was on her knees, a little dazed, covered with dust, and she felt some warm blood running down her forehead and cheeks.

Rin dispelled the shield and grabbed Azoth sword. She managed to stand up and wiped the blood off her face.

She sighed and raised her head just to see a muzzle of the gun, pointed straight at her forehead.


	13. Remember Me

_"_ _You really needed to wait for the end of the world to tell me this?"_

* * *

Blood. It was all Bazett could see when she opened her eyes.

It was not her blood, someone shielded her from collapsing wall of one of the buildings, using his own body. Lancer was breathing with short, loud breaths, his back covered with crimson.

"Cú Chulainn?"

"Oh, you're awake? Good…"

Bazett blinked, probably suffering a concussion.

"W-what are you doing? Standing here and bleeding… why?"

A heavy sigh instead of an answer.

"Cú…?"

"Well, this building collapsed on our heads." He was calm, almost relaxed, as usual, but also tired. Yet he certainly did not look like someone who plans to die right now. "Runes were not enough, I suppose. But don't waste too much energy for healing me, Master. We'll be needing it later."

"How could you?!" – a sudden, mad scream.

Lancer stared at his Master, evidently not knowing what's going on.

"You're dumb! You really don't understand? I would rather die in a fight at your side than live a single day without you." Tears in Bazett's eyes, while she was punching him mercilessly – unusual view, indeed. "No stupid sacrifices, you hopeless moron!"

"I will not feel any better, if you keep hitting me." He grabbed her chin and wiped away her tears. "You really needed to wait for the end of the world to tell me this?"

She punched him really hard for this and clung to him, crying.

"It's your fault for being dumb!"

"Yes, Master, whatever you say…" Lancer caressed her short hair and smiled with affection. "But now we must go. We have a dragon to defeat."

* * *

Sound of gunshot echoed in the alley. Bullet passed Tohsaka by and hit the stray ghoul behind her.

"What are you waiting for? Get up and help me fight them."

"Don't order me around, bitch."

Taika whistled through her teeth, pretending to be amazed.

"I think that we should settle the score between us after dealing with this filth." Rin was trying to interrupt her, but Necromancer threatened her with the gun again. "Or maybe you want to break your familiar's heart?" A vicious smile in response to Rin's angry gaze. "I mean - literally. He has a curse inside his chest. So better behave, Tohsaka."

"I will kill you anyway. I can wait few more minutes."

"Good. So let's dance with the dead, Tohsaka."

Rin frowned, readying her sword and last jewels. She was heading towards the dragon anyway, so having someone to cover her back on the way was not that bad, even if it was this psychopathic woman. At least she was able to fight and Rin had some time to prepare a plan and get out of this strange situation victorious.

 _Truly, it is some kind of insane danse macabre_ , she noticed and shivered at the thought.

* * *

_I think I'm not going to make it this time._

Zombies were not a problem, he already left tens of corpses behind him, wading through destroyed streets. He was careful enough to not bump into the shadows for some time. But now luck seemed to abandon him.

_Shame of you, you're both Emiya and Tohsaka, why do you even dare to think of giving up?_

_Well, positive thinking is a good thing, but… it would not wound these creatures, would it?_

Archer clenched his teeth and jumped on one of the ruined low level roofs. He still had some chances of survival if he was beyond their reach, and if he was fast enough. As long as these things won't realize that they can move on every surface they want.

He'd almost forgotten that he was not this skilled anymore and cursed the fact that he needed sisters' help to dematerialize. It was at the moment, when he wrongly measured the distance – or his own abilities, perhaps – and fell down to the street below.

It was painful as hell but his bones were not broken… yet. But his twin swords, fragile because of blackening, had shattered, while hitting the ground. Archer barely managed to get up, when shadows rushed at him, like hungry dogs which finally found some fresh meat.

Nameless 'Servant' attacked the creatures from unknown direction, fast like an arrow covered with shadows, and killed them with a few powerful slashes. His darkened Black Keys were perfect for this task.

"I thought that Rin Tohsaka told you that you are not allowed to die?" He was looking not at Archer, but stared at Kanshou and Bakuya, which were lying among rubble, completely useless. "They were corrupted anyway. They don't fit you anymore."

Archer picked up broken blades and realized, that his possible future self was right. He was not the same person anymore, even Grail's remnants wanted only to feed on him right now.

"It's nice that you're helping me, but… why are you doing this?" – bowman asked just to be sure.

"Isn't it obvious?" 'Servant' did not turn around or even glanced back at Archer. "If you die here, all my fighting will be in vain. You are the only hope for all of us."

Archer swallowed. _Us…_ He meant all EMIYAs who ever existed in this and other worlds. _Does it mean that I'm the only one?_ _A dream about rewriting their own fate came true only in my case? So it seems…_

"I will not die here."

"Good. Caren, I need a little more!" Priestess, who was observing them from relatively safe distance, shivered with pain, but nodded and let him release more power. Daggers appeared from the air and destroyed all shadows around. "Thank you, it's done. And you go for Rin. She's somewhere up there." His broken, future self showed him the way. "We'll go help Lancer and Bazett."

"Good luck!" Archer hid his smashed swords and ran, not looking back anymore.

* * *

Sakura and Lord El-Melloi II decided to move to better location, there was no sense in standing so far away from the battle. Their tried to pass through the chaos on the ground untouched, covered by the magical barrier. It worked well, but Sakura was losing her strength quickly, not fully recovered from her wound yet.

She almost fainted on the stairs, when they were climbing to the new observatory point on the skyscraper's roof. Instructor caught her on time and held her tightly in his arms.

"I'm sorry, I..."

"Don't be." Strange embarrassment in his voice. "Just rest for a while."

Sakura was surprised that he did not let her go yet. Maybe he was suggesting her to stay like that, in this awkward but also warm hug?

"You are very nice, Lord El-Melloi." She said with a soft smile, making the man feel extremely strange. His face suddenly turned red and he was unable to speak for a while. "What's happened? You're blushing."

"N-no i-it's nothing, r-really." Magus helped Sakura stand up, and looked away. "You're feeling well now?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I understand now why you and Shirou can't get along well. But you will, I'm sure. You're so much alike…"

"What do you mean?" Lord asked, a bit too loudly and too roughly, and stared at her. "There's no way we have anything in common!"

Sakura's smile widened, her voice was full of calm sincerity.

"I mean you both have a good heart. And you care for others much more than it seems."

"Oh."

_Oh? It was all the great Instructor from Clock Tower could say? This is… cute._

But silence between them started to be awkward. Fortunately it was El-Melloi who spoke first.

"I just thought that… if we survive… let's go out together somewhere? A dinner? Or coffee… maybe?"

Sakura opened her mouth, like she wanted to say something, but hesitated. Her eyes brightened when understanding came. She smiled.

"Sure. Why not. Let's go on a date later." She chuckled, amused by her own thoughts. "I hope we'll get through this alive then."

Lord El-Melloi II was standing there, with a strange mix of satisfaction and shock on his face. He was much more handsome when he did not act like a completely cocky, supercilious prick.

"And you won't change your mind?" – he asked shyly.

"No, I promise." She smiled again and it was her special, warm smile. It somehow made his heart pounding fast. "This is the first time I've been asked to go on a date…"

"Well, this is the first time I've asked someone, to be honest."

"Good." She stroked her hair and grabbed the bow. "But first we must help everyone make it happen."

* * *

 _Look out, Rin, she will attack you from behind!_ Archer warned her mentally. Feeling his presence nearby, Tohsaka's regained her composure and will to fight.

Rin turned around, preparing a powerful blow with her Azoth sword, aiming for Necromancer's head.

But Taika was standing still, with a strange, peaceful smile and a trace of blood running down from her mouth. The gun slipped from her hand and fell to the ground. Then Rin finally noticed an arrow in red-haired woman's chest.

Archer was standing on the nearest roof. He was breathing heavily, after running all the way here, his clothes stained with blood, bow in his hands.

"I see, so it was useless from the start. I was pretending to be alive, yet I was dead from the very beginning," Necromancer whispered to herself, while hitting the ground.

* * *

There was a child who never cried, a girl with blue eyes, cold like the northern sky. Everyone in her village feared her. They even did not give the girl a name, calling her "magic" instead.

It was truth that nobody had ever loved her.

And soon the day came, when her parents just left her far away from civilization, in the wastelands covered with snow, to die.

She did not cry, she did not call for help. She was just walking through the snow, as long as her legs numbed with cold. No living creature dared to approach the dying child, afraid of magic carved in her soul. Even wolves did not attacked her, at least not living ones.

All she knew about world, she learned from the dead. And finally even the dead betrayed her.

Her memories were shattered, chaotic, without any proper plot. A vampire's bite. Aurora borealis dancing on the distant sky. A team of vampire killers, freelancers to hire. And death, death, death…

 _Why are you showing me this?_ – Archer asked, unbearable pain in his chest where the cursed bullet stuck.

_I've always doubted myself, if I was truly alive. Remember me. Please. Otherwise it will be like… like I had never existed._

Rin was standing no more than two steps from the dying woman, not sure how to react. Taika gave her a very annoying smile.

"Ah… I get it now. It looks like all this time I was… I was just jealous." She chuckled, spitting blood. "You share something far beyond me. I will never touch this, never understand it." Necromancer closed her eyes. "Hurry up, Tohsaka. Or you will have the second Dead Apostle here soon."

Rin did not hesitate anymore. Azoth sword cut Necromancer's head off with ease. Being almost transformed into a vampire, woman's body changed into a pile of ash.

And Taika, a girl who never cried, vanished in the wind, like she had never existed.


	14. There's No Light Without Darkness

 

**Part I: True Meaning of Chaos**

_"_ _Destroy it, with all you have! Destroy it once and for all! Destroy every last bit of it!"_

* * *

"Hurry up, Archer. We must go!"

"Don't go, Rin." Archer grabbed Tohsaka's hand to stop her. "We have no dragonslaying weapons or spells, we won't be of any use now." He sighed and touched gently the wound on her forehead. "You're still bleeding, let me take care of this."

He did not wait for her approval, tore up his sleeve and carefully cleaned the wound.

"Huh?" Rin needed a moment to realize in how pitiful state they both were. She was almost out of jewels and already used more than half of her usual energy. Her head was indeed wounded, although not badly. But Archer was almost exhausted from running all the way here, battered and bruised, like he just fell off from the roof or something. She felt ashamed - forcing him to fight again would be just cruel now. Especially, that he would obey her, for sure.

_It must be hard for him to fully accept his weaknesses, watching Lancer and this tattooed guy. Yet he did_. Warmness spreading across her heart and cheeks was embarrassing. _For my sake. It's because of me he changed so much._

"Archer, I… need to tell you something…"

"I don't think this is the best time for confessions!"

Energetic arrow pierced chest of the ghoul, which was trying to sneak up to Tohsaka from behind. It was not Sakura's usual purple missile, but light, calm green one. She was using Lord El-Melloi's magic circuits right now.

"So, everyone's alive?" Magus approached them slowly, his hands in his pockets, but he was also visibly tired. "Good. What's now?"

Above their heads black monster roared terribly, when a blue-red arrow came at him with full speed.

"We watch and wait."

* * *

Gáe Bolg pierced dragon's heart, they all could see it clearly. Monster was raging for a while, struggling in pain, and collapsed. The ground trembled under the creature, but something was wrong. Red spear was apparently not enough to strike the vampire down.

"We have full moon tonight or something?" – Cú Chulainn asked, visibly frustrated.

"Who knows? You can't tell, because of this cursed bounded field."

The creature was not regenerating in the true meaning of the word, but rather turning the time backwards, to ignore the effect of Lancer's hit. All they achieved was a short break.

But soon this thing will get up, pissed off and hungry for revenge.

They all were starting to lose composure and hope, when Nameless 'Servant' spoke, calm as usual:

"What do you want me to do, Caren?"

He said already, that the World did not give him free will here, so he had to wait for her commands. Although he knew what to do, he waited for her approval.

"Caren, your order?"

Golden eyes of the priestess were shining, when she ordered with all her might:

"Destroy it, with all you have! Destroy it once and for all! Destroy every last bit of it!"

With all restraints removed, he was not the same creature anymore, and even Lancer stepped back, overwhelmed by the power of his true form.

"Understood, my cute and ruthless Master." 'Servant' smiled. "But first…"

He caught Caren in his arms. She squealed, surprised, and her legs were waving helplessly in the air. He kissed the girl and it was a long kiss, wild and passionate. Caren could not catch her breath and almost fainted in his arms.

"Yeah, I've always wanted to do this." He licked his lips like a wolf which tasted some fresh blood. "I have a weakness for beautiful women, after all. Farewell, my mean but extremely attractive Master!"

"Wait, why are saying goodbye to me?"

"You ordered me to destroy every last bit of it, right?" His red, inhuman eyes were shining with pleasure and joy. He was incredibly happy right now. "Thank you for releasing me from my duty."

"Wh…" She could not say anything more, because he kissed her again, ever more fervently. Then he touched her forehead, forcing her to lose consciousness with mana blast, and threw her to Lancer.

"Hey!" Cú Chulainn caught the girl, surprised. "What are y…?"

"Get her out of here, or she'll break soon. Go, all of you, as far as you can. I'll deal with the bloodsucking lizard." His wide grin, full of joy, was somehow out of place right now.

"Are you sure?" – Bazett asked, but she looked happy that someone else decided to do the job.

"There's no single thing I cannot destroy in my true form, trust me."

* * *

"I see." Archer said, slowly getting up from the rubble he was sitting on. "Suppress the fantasy by even greater fantasy."

"How?" Sakura asked. "Dragon is the ultimate species, free from the rights of the World. What could surpass it?"

"Something which existed before dragons, gods or world itself." Archer's eyes were shining with fascination. "Pure, cosmic darkness. Humanity used to call it 'Chaos'."

He smiled, realizing, that it was so simple and obvious from the beginning. He glanced at Kanshou and Bakuya, now broken and useless, at their black and white pattern. There's always darkness hidden within light and light existing within darkness. Every end is the beginning. One cannot exist without another.

"Go get it, Emiya. Go, make your dream come true."

* * *

"I am the Spreader of the Plague,

the one who'd been abandoned.

I have lost everything,

even my name,

and never managed to save anyone."

He smiled, because it was not true anymore.

Actually, he was going to save them all right now.

"Have acknowledged my pain

yet never felt anything except it.

Another thing, which needed actualization. Because of Caren he realized something important and he decided to fight for it.

She was like a little ray of light in complete darkness. She gave him hope.

"So, as I pray, Infinite Wastelands Arise."

They were infinite in their true form, like a black hole, able to absorb everything around. But normally he could not control it, so every time he used this ability, total destruction happened. Thanks to Caren, this power was now directed – the only thing to destroy was the black mud, shattered pieces of Servant imprisoned once within the Grail, and everything affected or blackened by him.

Broken 'Counter Guardian' smiled and closed his eyes, overjoyed. The last task soon will be completed. His Reality Marble pulled in everything connected to former Avenger – the dragon-vampire, his bounded field, remained shadows and undead, blackened swords of Archer and even Nameless 'Servant' himself – to devour it.

And after that, it devoured itself and vanished to complete nothingness.

* * *

"It seems much brighter than before…" – Rin noticed, looking at the sky.

Sunlight was blinding, indeed. The sky was clear and calm, with the perfect shade of blue. Above their heads a little bird soared into the air, chirping cheerfully.

"It's the same as usual, Rin." Archer smiled, grabbing her right hand. "We just could not notice how bright it was, until the true darkness came."

Sakura grasped Shirou's free hand from the other side. She also reached out her right hand to Lord El-Melloi II and he accepted with a blush.

"Aaah, I think you're right." Rin smiled a little and grasped the hand of Caren, linking the girl to their living chain. "What do you think, Caren?"

Priestess was not smiling, but she seemed to be amazed by the view as well. She nodded, swallowing the tears.

"It's all right, Caren." Bazett joined them too. "Another wish came true today. And you should think of your own wish from now on."

"What about my wish?" Lancer was determined to ruin the moment. "I think I'll start to make it come true right now."

He hugged his Master from behind, partially showing affection, partially just making fun of Bazett. She protested passionately, but only provoked him more and had to deal with aggressive tickles.

Archer glanced at them over his shoulder and smiled. They all were wounded and exhausted. It was the end of the world they were facing, after all.

And exactly because of that, they felt alive like never before.

**Part II: The Full Circle**

_"_ _Many people died back then. Who knows how many little Shirous lost their families and decided to become heroes…"_

* * *

"Go, go, Uncle Shirou! Uncle Shirou!"

"Hey, shouldn't you be rather on your father's side?!" - Lord El-Melloi II reprimanded the audience.

"But Uncle Shirou plays better than you, dad!"

"Go, dad! Yay, Uncle Shirou got you now!"

Four people gathered around the TV – two children, boy and girl, and two adults, probably more childish than kids. Pads in their hands, they looked like in the middle of the duel to death.

"Hey, all of you! You're not intend to sit here all day, I suppose?" Sakura entered the room with 'proud mother' expression on her face. "Go for a walk or something!"

"I'll go to Grandma! She has candy!"

"I'll go first!"

"No! I won't let you!"

Kids abandoned the game and ran to Aoi. This stage was already finished and there was no surprise who won again.

"I'll defeat you next time." Lord El-Melloi II was quite serious now, despite thin smile on his face.

"In your dreams." Archer left the room, chuckling.

Sakura winked to him on the corridor. He knew well this kind of expression, 'Tohsaka expression'. She was plotting something, no doubt.

"Christmas is coming," she started on their way to Rin's room. "And kids are big enough to have some real fun, don't you think?"

Something dangerous was coming - Archer noticed and trembled.

"What? Don't tell me that you want me to play Santa?"

"You're terrified?"

"A little." He admitted honestly. "Why me? Do I look so old?"

"Noooo, but kids love you so much." She kissed his cheek. "You'll do it for me, right? Please, Shirou…"

Her voice was so tempting that he blushed unwittingly.

"Your husband has bad influence on you, Sakura." She laughed and gave him long, piercing gaze. "Fine. But just this once, ok? I'm sure they won't like it anyway..."

"You're the best, Shirou." Sakura hugged Archer warmly, making him blush again. "Come later to try on the costume!"

He sighed heavily, watching Sakura running down the stairs, and entered the room. Tohsaka wasn't there, so he decided to wait for her and sat on the couch.

Rin barely glanced at Archer when she came in, an open envelope in her hand.

"Look, it's Christmas card from Caren." Rin showed him a postcard with strange stamp. Caren dedicated herself to missionary work, teaching children and helping charity organizations around the world. She finally found her way and happiness in this job.

"She won't come?"

"No. But Bazett and Cú will, they're on the way. Why are you laughing?"

"Don't ever call him 'Cú', Rin, if you want to live."

"I know…" She sat on the couch next to him, well, almost on his lap, to be precise. "What Sakura did to you? You looked miserable when I came in."

"I'll be playing Santa for kids." He sighed again, to show her how deep was his suffering because of this fact.

"It's great, kids will be happy." She rolled her eyes in response to his sullen expression. "Come on, they love you, so you can play idiot sometimes to make them happy, right?"

"So you're admitting that this is idiotic?"

"Yes, but being idiotic for your loved ones is fine… from time to time." She smiled, a little too viciously for him.

"You love kids too, don't you, Rin?"

This question sounded innocent, but there was some deeper meaning in Archer's words. The last thing he was blaming himself for.

"Our family prospers, these kids will inherit both Tohsaka and El-Melloi magic crests and positions. We don't need more kids, I've told you already." She caressed the top of his hand. "It's perfectly fine."

It was. They were happy like this. Archer opened his little gastronomic business and it was functioning perfectly. Yet still he found some time for archery lessons in Homurahara Academy, and for training with Rin. Tohsaka suspected that it was because of Lancer's teasing about his 'rusted' skills. She did not mind it, trainings were keeping them both fit.

And Rin had a lot of duties, both as Lord El-Melloi's Assistant and first mage of Fuyuki. She was doing what she loved – expanding her magical knowledge and experimenting.

"By the way… I should proceed with my research soon to make IT happen. To close this story in a full circle."

'IT' meant the experiment that started this timeline, according to Assassin's words during the Fifth Grail War.

"But you don't want to?" – Archer asked, hearing some doubts in her voice.

"I'm not sure that I should… And I don't have the relic anymore."

Archer was hesitating for a moment then gave her the pendant which was always on his neck, hidden beneath the shirt.

"Summon him," he said.

Blue eyes were shining, when Rin grabbed the jewel and took a deep, long breath.

"Many people died back then. Who knows how many little Shirous lost their families and decided to become heroes…"

"I know what you're thinking, but… Our debt to the World has been already paid. If we really had any in the first place. And you must admit that the final outcome was not that bad."

"But... are we the ones to decide?"

"What we decide right now is our future, nothing more, Rin. You cannot save everyone."

He smiled, surprised, how far he went from his old self. This sounded so egoistic… Rin must have noticed this too, because she asked:

"Are we not villains then?"

Well, maybe. In a way this nameless guy was thinking, they were pure evil, for sure. But he also decided to fight for himself in the end, and got what he truly wanted.

"That's how people act, Rin. You can do nothing about it." He shrugged. "Besides, if you try to reset this timeline, this guy will come back and kill you for sure. So better be wise."

She smiled at the thought and sighed. Archer was right. Many people decided to fight for this timeline, even gave their lives for their happiness. So it was not only her decision. But she had to fulfill her duty of closing the circle and set the events into motion.

It did not sound so terrible this way, she concluded.

"Yeah, it's not that bad, after all." Rin let herself hide in his arms.

"Could it even be any better?"

"Of course… We could be now on the tropical beach, sipping exotic drinks."

"Meh, I like my current drink better," he laughed and kissed her, slowly, devoting himself absolutely to this single action. Like she was the most important woman in the world. "Yes, this is definitely my favourite taste."

"Pervert."

"You're the one to talk…"

Blue eyes filled the whole field of his vision, and it was like diving into a bottomless sea of magic and emotions. And bond their shared exploded with these feelings too. It was something extremely beautiful. A kind of miracle, indeed.

If this is how evil looks like, Archer was ready to worship it.

Actually, he already did. And could not imagine any greater happiness.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is the end of this timeline and story… I hope You enjoyed it. Don't forget to leave comments, because without them I don't know if and how to continue. Thank You in advance!
> 
> I'm going to update "The Only Thing You Can Change" from time to time, bonus chapters will come. And I'm rewriting the story of 5th Grail War in "Another Time". Old friends are back and two – not one – new Servants will participate. Powerful opponents will clash, so I hope it will be interesting.
> 
> Thank You for reading and commenting this long! See You soon!


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